Haunted
by TwistedRocketPower
Summary: A man from Tim's past comes back, forcing Tim to tell the team about a part of his life that no one close to him, besides his family, ever knew. The man intends to finish a job he started years earlier, bringing great danger to Tim's life.
1. Twenty Three Years

_"Come on, let's go!"_

_"I don't want to, Devon."_

_"Ugh! It'll be fun."_

_"My mom doesn't like me out-"_

_"Past dark," Devon finished, "I know. We've been best friends forever, I know what your mom doesn't like." He waited for an answer, "You know you really want to."_

_"…Fine."_

_The two boys ran outside, into the backyard. In behind the row of suburban homes was the woods. The young kids in the neighborhood always played in the woods together, but this evening it was just the two boys._

_They ran deep into the woods, back to a spot where a small lake was at. In the winter it would freeze over and all the kids would skate and play on it, but right now... it was just a lake._

_"You go to the right, I'll go to the left," Devon said, "I wanna be the soldier this time. You be the Indian."_

_"Okay. What's the rules this time?"_

_"We have to stay as quiet as possible. If I make a noise that you hear, I lose points. Same with you." Devon looked around. He picked up a few pebbles, "These will be our ammo. There's a bunch of them everywhere. Yours will be arrows, mine will be bullets."_

_"Alright… Just don't throw them at my head this time."_

_Devon rolled his eyes, "Get hit three times, you're dead. Those are the only rules… Go!"_

_Both boys grabbed some pebbles and ran off in their separate directions. Once they were both hidden behind trees, the game began._

_At first everything was quiet, then Devon heard a noise from the other side of the lake, "Heard that! You lose a point!"_

_"I don't even _have_ a point yet!.. How do we even _get_ points?"_

_"We don't! We just keep losing them!"_

_"Then why do the points matter?"_

_"Just shut up and play the game, will ya?"_

_"Fine!"_

_Again everything got quiet as the game continued._

_After a few minutes, there was a crunch sound, "Devon, I heard that! You lose a point!"_

_There was no reply._

_"Devon! Did you hear me?"_

_Everything was silent._

_He decided to walk out from the trees to try and see where Devon had gone. When he looked around, there was no sight of him, "Devon! Devon, this isn't fu-"_

_He was cut off mid-word by someone wrapping their arms around him. Before he even had the chance to scream, the person covered his mouth and nose with one hand, holding him tight with the other._

_The young boy fought to take a breath, fought to get away, fought to _scream!_.. But he couldn't. He couldn't do anything. His life was quickly fading away and he couldn't do a thing._

Tim's eyes popped open and he sat up quickly as he woke from his nightmare. His heart was pounding and he was covered in sweat.

He reached over and turned on his lamp, suddenly not enjoying the darkness. He looked at his clock. It was just past two thirty in the morning.

_'Maybe she'll still be awake,'_ Tim thought, knowing he needed to talk to someone. He always did after one of _those_ dreams.

He picked up his cell phone off of his nightstand and scrolled down his list of contacts. Once he got to the right name, he pressed the call button and waited for an answer.

"Tim?"

"Hey, Sarah."

"Hi," She replied, sounding confused.

"What are you doing?"

"Studying. Why are you still…" Her voice trailed off as it hit her, "It's happening again, isn't it?"

He took a deep breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead, "Yeah. Yeah, it is."

"It always does this time of year. Which part was it?"

"Th… The beginning. The v… very beginning," Tim began to stutter over his words. That always happened when he talked about the nightmares.

"You wanna talk about it?"

Tim rubbed his eyes. He had told her this nightmare so many times that she knew it by heart, "No… No, I- I'm okay."

"You sure? I don't mind."

"I'm sure… Just, don't tell Mom and Dad."

Sarah sighed, "They're gonna know anyways, Tim."

"I know, just… just don't tell them."

"I won't. I promise."

"Thanks. Goodnight, Sarah."

"Goodnight, Tim," Sarah replied, "Call me if you need me. I'll be up."

"Okay."

Tim hung up and, for a moment, he just stared straight ahead, not really focusing on anything.

His sheets were cold from him sweating as he dreamed. His body felt clammy and sick. Past memories swam through his head, crowding his mind with horrible images and feelings.

He shook his head, forcing himself to put those thoughts out of his mind.

Realizing he would not be going back to sleep, Tim got up and decided to take a shower. He'd have to be at work in four hours anyway, why not get ready now?

...Almost twenty-three years. That's how long ago it happened. That's how long since he and his best friend were kidnapped on that mid-June evening.

The nightmares happened every year since then… It had almost become a normal thing. But, this year, something felt different to Tim. His gut was yelling at him, but he wasn't quite sure what it was saying… and he _didn't_ want to find out.

* * *

><p><strong>This story has been stuck in my head since mid-way through Triangle. I've been dying to write it, so I hope it turns out to be as good as I wish it would :)<strong>

**Let me know what you think of the first chapter. Thanks so much!**


	2. Good Memories

Tim sat at his desk, fighting to keep his eyes open. It had been an extremely long night after waking up from the nightmare. It took him longer than usual to shake the memories from his mind.

"Come on, McSerious, the joke was funny!" Tony said, laughing as he spoke.

Tim looked over at him, "Huh?"

Tony sighed, "You weren't even listening? Not cool, Probie, not cool."

"Are you alright, McGee?" Ziva asked as she rested her elbows on her desk. She had noticed Tim's blank facial expression a few moments earlier.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You are sure?"

"I am," Tim replied with a nod and a small, _fake_ smile to help her feel better.

Just then, Gibbs came walking into the bullpen, "McGee, go down to the lab and help Abby."

"With what, Boss?"

"With that… computer thing she's doing- Just go, McGee."

"Yes, Boss," Tim replied as he got up and headed for the lab.

* * *

><p>Abby smiled, "Hi, Timmy! I haven't seen you in a- What's wrong?"<p>

"What?"

"Something's wrong with you."

"There's nothing wrong with me."

She put her hands on her hips, "Did you not sleep last night?"

Tim sighed, _'Why must she know me so well?'_ He thought.

"No, I didn't."

"How come?"

"I don't know, just couldn't. I'm fine though, really. Now, what did you need help with?" Tim asked, hoping to get Abby off the subject of him.

"Well, I need you to bring back up files off of our suspect's computer. He deleted a bunch, but I think there is hope for a resurrection… I just don't have time to make that miracle happen right now."

Tim smiled, "I think I can help with that."

Abby bowed to Tim, "Thank you, Timmy dearest."

* * *

><p>For the next half hour, Tim and Abby worked down in the lab together. Abby doing her thing, and Tim doing his… It was odd. Not them being together in the lab. But that Abby <em>never<em> liked having people down in the lab with her for long amounts of time… besides Tim. She never cared if he was there. He didn't get in her way like others did. He had his space, she had hers, and they just worked well together.

"Okay, I got it. All the deleted files are back up."

Abby clapped, "Yay! I knew you could do it, my little hard-drive-miracle-worker you!"

Tim's cell phone began ringing at that moment. "It's Gibbs," He said before answering.

"Hello."

"McGee, we gotta go. Got another crime scene."

"Alright, I'm coming."

They both hung up and Tim stood, "I gotta go, Abbs. See ya later."

"Bye, Timmy. Thank you."

He smiled back at her as he walked out, "No problem."

* * *

><p><em>"Mmm," Tim groaned as he began to wake up. He opened his eyes and, at first, everything was blurry.<em>

_Blinking a few times helped to clear his vision. He felt something cold against his ankles, causing him to looked down at them._

_They were chained to two upside down, U-shaped iron rods that had been put into the cement floor._

_He looked around the room... At least the part that he could see in front and beside him. Cement walls, cement floor, no windows, one door… with at least six dead bolts on it._

_With his heart racing he reached down and tried to get the cuffs off from his ankles. When that didn't work he tugged at the chains, but they didn't let up._

_That's when he remembered Devon. He quickly looked back, knowing that's the only place he could be… and there he was. He was tied up the same way Tim was._

_Tim crawled over to him. His chains letting him go just far enough to shake Devon. "Devon. Devon, wake up! Wake up!"_

_"Hm?" Devon said, his eyes still closed._

_"Wake up!"_

_Devon took a deep breath and opened his eyes. Suddenly realizing that he wasn't at home, he sat up, "Where are we?"_

_"I don't know."_

_"What's going on?"_

_"I don't know."_

_Devon looked down at his chains and, just like Tim, he tugged at them, trying to get himself free._

_"It won't work," Tim told him._

_"I have to try!" Devon kept pulling at the chains, but he made no progress, "Help! Help!" He began to yell, "Help us!"_

_Tim's eyes widened, "What are you doing?" He asked._

_"What does it sound like I'm doing? Help!"_

_"Stop!"_

_"Why?"_

_"They'll hear you."_

_Devon eyebrows furrowed, "Who will?"_

_"Whoever got us."_

_"What if a _good_ person hears me yelling? They'll get us help. They'll get us out."_

_"Look around, Devon! There are no windows, no anything! It's all cement."_

_Devon sighed, "Help!" He continued to yell, "Help!"_

_Suddenly, Tim heard a noise, "Shut up," He warned. Still, Devon yelled. Tim put a hand over his mouth, "Shut up! I hear something."_

_Devon grabbed Tim's hand and pushed it away. He started to yell again, but stopped before anything came out._

_The deadbolts began unlocking._

_"They're coming," Tim said, his heart pounding even harder. He hurried back over to the side of the room he had woken up on, and curled into the back corner of the wall._

_Devon, seeing Tim do this, did the same thing on_ his_ side of the room._

_The last deadbolt unlocked and two people entered the room. You couldn't see a face, what they were wearing, what they looked like… nothing. They were just two black blobs, cut out in the shape of people. Just an outline with no features._

_At the sight of them, Tim curled up even tighter, putting his knees against his chest._

_One of the shapes walked up to Tim. At first they just stood there. Then after a couple of minutes, they reached down and grabbed his arm-_

"Tim! Tim, wake up!"

"No! Don't touch me!" Tim yelled as he pushed Tony back. His eyes popped open to see he was in the car… and Tony, Ziva and Gibbs were all staring at him.

"Jeez, McPushy, what was that for?"

Tim took deep breaths, trying to get his heart back to beating regularly, "S-Sorry. I fell asleep and- and I had a nightmare."

"Really?" Tony replied sarcastically, "Couldn't have guessed."

"DiNozzo, shut up," Gibbs said. He opened his car door and got out.

"We're already back at NCIS?" Tim asked. He felt like they had just gotten back in the car from the crime scene.

"We have been back for a while," Ziva replied, "It took some time to wake you up… It must have been a pretty bad dream," She said, seeing how pale he looked.

He took a deep breath, "It was just a dream," He said quietly, then got out of the car.

* * *

><p>Tim sat down at his desk, getting the remnants of his nightmare out of his mind. He put his elbows on his desk and rubbed his eyes… That's when he felt something under his elbow.<p>

It was a envelope, addressed to Tim.

Figuring it was the only mail he had gotten for the day, he picked it up and opened it.

Inside the envelope was a photo. There was a note on the back which Tim read before turning the picture over.

'Good memories. I am ready to make more.'

Tim's eyebrows furrowed. He turned over the picture and his heart skipped a beat. He began to shake and he felt light headed.

Tony and Ziva, who were just arriving at their desks, stopped as they noticed Tim shaking and growing paler by the second. Gibbs, who was already at his desk, noticed this too.

"Tim," Gibbs said, honestly concerned. He had never seen Tim look so... terrified, "Tim, what is it?"

* * *

><p><strong>So happy with all the positive reviews! Thank you guys so much :) I hope you continue to enjoy the story.<strong>

**Oh, and the people being "black blobs"... I promise this is not a sci-fi story haha... The blobs will be explained ;)**


	3. No Big Deal

Tim dropped the picture onto his desk and stood up quickly, as though the photo was some sort of deadly poisonous bug about to bite him.

He stared down, unsure of what to do. His hands were sweaty and he felt like he was gonna vomit… he _was_ gonna vomit.

As Tony and Ziva walked over and Gibbs got up from his desk, Tim grabbed his trash can and threw up into it immediately. Memories flooded into his mind that hadn't been there for years. Things that he had suppressed for so long.

Everything around him seemed to fade into a blur, and the voices seemed so distant. Tony coming by his side, patting his shoulder. Ziva asking him what was wrong. Gibbs reaching for the photo that Tim had thrown down…

_No! Gibbs couldn't get the picture!_

Everything becoming clear again, Tim shoved the trash can into Tony's stomach- which Tony quickly put down- then grabbed up the photo, holding it close to him. He wouldn't make eye contact with anyone. He thought, maybe, that if he didn't look at them, they'd all just go away… Then he realized how stupid and childish that was.

"McGee, give it to me," Gibbs said. His voice was calm and low.

Tim shook his head, "No."

Tony and Ziva glanced at each other. Neither of them knew what to say.

Gibbs stuck out his hand, "Now, McGee." He sounded more demanding this time, but the calmness remained.

"No, I… I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because."

"You're gonna have to do better than that, McGee."

"B- Because it's… it's mine and it's… it's no big- big deal." ...The stutter. The obnoxious, annoying stutter that Tim hated so much was returning… And it was all because of seeing that photo.

"No big deal?" Tony replied, eyebrows raised, "McGee, you just upchucked after looking at that thing. It's gotta be a big deal."

Tim still refused to make eye contact, "I just… I had some bad lunch I guess. It didn't have t- to do with the picture."

"So, the photo is nothing bad?" Ziva asked.

"No."

Again, Gibbs put out his hand, "Then let me see it."

For the first time since being confronted, Tim looked up at Gibbs. He would have said no again. He would have torn the photo into millions of pieces so it could never be seen. Not by him, not by the team, not by his family, not by anyone. But the words on the back. They kept repeating in his mind, _'Good Memories. I am ready to make more… I am ready to make more… I am ready to make more.'_

This wasn't something that was just going to go away. Whether he showed them the picture or not, they would find out anyway.

With shaking hands, Tim slowly released his grip on the picture, handing it to Gibbs.

Gibbs looked at it, with Tony and Ziva eyeing him curiously to see his reaction.

Gibbs studied the photo. Two young boys, one lying on his stomach, the other on his side. They had on old, ratty, oversized t-shirts that went down to their knees. They were both looking up at the camera, their faces dirty, bruised and bloody. They looked terrified. You could see the chains that led to their ankles, and the cuffs tight around them.

After a moment, Gibbs looked up at Tim, "Do you know who sent you this?"

Tim shook his head, once again avoiding eye contact.

"Tony, I need and two evidence bags, now. One for the photo, and one for the envelope. Get it down to Abby. Tell her to check for prints, and for missing children whose photos match this. We need to find out who these kids are."

"No, you don't," Tim spoke up.

Tony, who had started to go to his desk for an evidence bag, stopped in his tracks and turned back to Tim.

Gibbs' eyebrows furrowed, "What, McGee?"

"Look on the back."

Gibbs turned the photo over and read the note out loud, "'Good memories. I am ready to make more.' You know who these kids are, McGee?"

Tim nodded. He forced back the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes, "Yes."

"Who?" Gibbs asked, becoming impatient.

"The one on his stomach… His name's Devon…"

Ziva took the photo from Gibbs, holding it just by the edge. She and Tony looked at it, "And the other one?" She questioned.

"That's… That's me."

Of all the things they were expecting to come out of Tim's mouth, _that_ was not one of them. Gibbs had figured that, seeing Tim had had such a strong reaction to the photo, there was some type of personal ties to it… but not _this_ personal.

Tony, Ziva and Gibbs all stood there in shock.

Gibbs was the first to find his voice, "What'd you say, Tim?"

"I'm th- the other boy."

"Are you serious, Probie?" Tony asked, not able to believe it.

"Why would I joke about that, Tony!" Tim snapped.

"Sorry," Tony replied quickly, "I just…"

"Let's go to the conference room. Now," Gibbs began, "And, Tony, that picture and the envelope still needs bagged. You can take it to Abby after we all talk. Ziva, call maintenance to come clean out Tim's trash can."

Tony nodded, "On it, Boss."

"Yes, Gibbs."

Gibbs began to head for the conference room, but Tim didn't move.

Gibbs turned around, "McGee, come on."

"I… I don't…"

Gibbs sighed and walked up to Tim, "You're gonna have to talk about it, Tim," He said in a fatherly tone as he looked into the younger agent's eyes, "I know you don't want to, but we gotta know."

Tim stared at him for a moment, his bright green eyes filled with sadness and fear. After a moment, he nodded, "Okay."

* * *

><p>Tony, Ziva, Gibbs and Tim all sat down in the conference room. They were all at least a chair apart, mostly because they wanted to give Tim space.<p>

Gibbs would have preferred it to be just him and Tim, but he knew it was better this way in the long run. Tony and Ziva would have to find out eventually, so why not now?

"Take your time, Tim," Gibbs said, knowing that whatever Tim had to say, would be very difficult. It was obviously something he hadn't discussed in years.

"Can- Can I see the picture?" Tim asked, knowing Tony brought it into the room in the evidence bag.

Tony glanced at Gibbs, and Gibbs nodded.

"Here you go," Tony said, sliding over the photo.

Tim looked at the bag for a moment. The photo was turned over, so he couldn't see it yet.

He slowly picked up the bag and flipped it over. Looking at it again, this time in more detail, both gave Tim chills, _and_ made him begin to sweat. He rubbed his hand through his hair and took a deep breath.

"I was ten…" Tim began, not looking up from the picture, "_We_ were ten. Devon and I were best friends. We had grown up together. Both of our dad's were in the Navy… One night, in June, we went out to play in the woods that were in our backyard. All the kids went back there to play, but that night… that night, it was just us. It was later than when we usually played, but Devon convinced me to go." Tim looked away from the picture, setting it down on the table. He looked straight ahead, not looking directly at anyone. He didn't want to see their facial expressions as he told the story. "There was a lake back in the woods where we would go. We were playing soldiers and Indians. We were hidden from each other and… and I heard a noise. I called out to him, but he didn't- he didn't reply," Tim laughed a sad laugh, "I thought he was playing a trick on me, but… but he wasn't. Someone grabbed me from behind. They were suffocating me… I tried to get free, but I couldn't." Tim's breathing quickened. Gibbs could see his chest rising and lowering at a faster-than-normal speed.

"McGee, you need a break?" Gibbs asked.

Tim shook his head, forcing his breathing to return to normal, "No. No, I wanna… I wanna finish."

Gibbs nodded, "Okay."

Tim picked the picture back up and looked at it, "The next thing I remember is- is waking up at the place."

Ziva opened her mouth to ask "What place?" But a quick look from Gibbs told her to just let him continue.

"It was. It was a dark place. There was a small light bulb that hung down the middle of the room. That was the only light…" Tim slid the picture over to Gibbs, "We woke up like that… We weren't in those close then, but- but that's where we were."

"How did you get out, Tim?" Gibbs asked. They needed to know the whole story. Every part of it, from the minute Tim was taken, until he was found… But Gibbs knew all of this was tough on Tim, and right now _how_ he got away, or _how_ he was found, was very important.

Tim paused, "I- I don't remember."

"You don't remember?"

"All I know is Devon didn't get out. That's it! I- I don't even remember what the people who took me and Devon look like!" Tim stood up, "I let myself forget everything once it was over. I get little bits and pieces, but nothing useful. I- I trained myself to forget it and move on. I went to therapy for years and I just- I just let it go! I didn't want to remember. I _don't_ want to remember!"

Gibbs stood up, "Okay, McGee. That's enough for right now. Tony, get the evidence down to Abby-"

"Don't tell her," Tim interrupted, "Please… not yet."

"Tell her to check for prints. She'll ask about who's in the photo, but tell her we don't know."

Tony nodded, "On it, Boss."

He left out of the room, unable to tell his co-worker- and friend- how sorry he was for what Tim went through.

"Tim, why did this never show up when you started at NCIS? Everyone goes through intense background checks."

"Detective Elijah Donovin," Tim replied.

"Who?"

"He worked the case for a long time. He tried to find one of the people that- that got away. I asked him, when I got up older, if there was anything he could do to make it go away… So no one would find out. He deleted everything from the system. No one cared because the case had gone cold by then. Then he took the files and… and retired."

Gibbs turned to Ziva, "Find Donovin, find the files. We need everything."

Ziva nodded, "Yes, Gibbs."

Ziva left and all that remained was Tim and Gibbs.

Gibbs came up close to Tim, "If you know anything else, you have to tell us. That note… Whoever took you before wants to finish the job, Tim."

"I know," Tim said, "I just… I can't remember anything else."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure." Tim hoped Gibbs couldn't see through his lie...

He could.

* * *

><p><strong>Big Abby hugs for everyone who's read and reviewed and alerted! That's so sweet of all of you. Thank you, thank you.<strong>

**Random note: I went to a hurricane expo yesterday... Two actually. Got lots of free stuff and I am totally hurricane prepared haha**


	4. Questions

Gibbs thought about smacking Tim on the back of the head and yelling at him for lying… but he knew that wouldn't help anything in this situation… if anything, it would just make Tim want to tell everything he knew even less.

The whole thing was so confusing and hard to take in. Gibbs had tried to take in all the information that Tim had given him, but it was all just such a shock. One that none of the agents were prepared for.

* * *

><p>Tony shook his head as he made his way to the lab. He took the stairs to blow off some steam that had gathered from his walk out of the conference room to the elevator. He stared down at the photo. He couldn't understand how anyone could do that to two children… He could never understand that while working <em>any<em> case that involved kids… but this was his partner. A whole chunk of his partner's life that no one ever knew. What had happened to Tim while he was there? How could Tim just forget about it?

That was something Tony wasn't buying. He had seen people forget about major events in their life, but when they see something, like an old photo, that takes them back to that time and place, they remember at least _something_ new.

Pausing for a moment before entering the lab, Tony took a deep breath. He knew Abby was gonna ask questions and, when he couldn't give spot-on answers, she would ask even _more_ questions.

"Hey, Abbs," Tony said as he walked into the lab, putting on his famous smile.

"Hey, Tony. What's up?"

"I've got an envelope and a picture that needs some of your awesome fingerprinting work done on it."

"Nice. I'll get to it right after I finish this oth-"

"Uh, it's kinda a rush thing, Abbs."

"Oh," She replied, becoming curious, "What is it?"

He handed over the photo and envelope.

"Oh my God," She said as she looked at the photo, "Is this a recent picture?"

"No, we think it's an old one. On the back, whoever sent it, says 'good memories'."

Abby turned the photo over and looked at the back, then she looked at the envelope, "Why is it addressed to Tim?" She asked, eyebrows furrowed.

_'Think fast, DiNozzo.'_

"It was sent to McGee," Tony replied.

"Why?"

"We don't know."

"Is the note on the back for him?"

"Abby, all we know right now is that we need to know if there are any fingerprints on the envelope or the photo. That's all."

Abby stared at Tony for a moment, wondering if she should believe him or not, "Want me to run a facial recognition on the two boys? It should come up on old cases of missing children, plus, if they're in any system now, it could match the what they used to look like then to what they look like now."

Tony took in a deep breath, "Abby,_ just_ the fingerprints. That's all we need… and soon."

Abby sighed but nodded, "Okay. I will get right on that," She turned around to face away from him, "You will know approximately thirty-two seconds after I do. Because that's how long it takes me to pick up my phone, call one of you guys, for whoever to answer, and for me to give you the…" her voice trailed off as she turned to see Tony was already gone, "Results."

* * *

><p>After letting Tim go back to the bullpen, Gibbs made his way to Vance's office.<p>

"Leon, we need to talk."

"Are you ever gonna learn how to knock, Gibbs? Ever?"

Gibbs sat down across from Vance, "You need to assign another team the Herald case."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because, me and my team have another, more important, case now."

"That I didn't hear about before you? What would this case be, Gibbs? And how can it be more important than finding Herald's- who was a top notch NCIS agent- killer?"

"Cause _this _case is the person who kidnapped McGee when he was just a kid."

Vance's whole demeanor changed, "Agent McGee? He was never kidnapped. That would have been in his file."

Gibbs shook his head, "No. Some detective removed every trace of the case right before he retired. He did it for Tim… so no one would ever know."

"My God… What happened?"

"McGee got a photo of himself from back when he was taken. He and his friend were both kidnapped together. On the back, the man, or woman, wrote that they enjoyed the memories and were ready to make more."

"I take it you're already trying to find the retired detective?"

"Ziva's on it."

"And what did Agent McGee tell you? Who is this? What did they do to him? What happened to his friend?"

Gibbs stood, "He doesn't know anything, Leon. Says he made himself forget about it years ago and now he can't remember."

"Do you believe him?"

Gibbs paused, "I believe he doesn't remember _everything_."

"But there are some things he is not telling you?"

"Most definitely."

Vance stood and walked around his desk, "Alright, you work on this, I'll give the Herald case to someone else. I'll work on getting McGee a safehouse to stay in until-"

Gibbs shook his head, "Bad idea, Leon."

"How come?"

"Whoever this is, they want Tim. We put Tim in hiding, they'll hide."

"How do you know? You barely know anything about this person... or people."

"My gut. We need more, Leon. We don't have much to go on right now. Whoever this is, is going to send more clues… If I feel McGee is in danger, I will be the first to shove him in a safehouse. For now, as long as someone checks his apartment before he enters every night after work… He'll be okay."

"You seem pretty sure."

"I am."

"And if you're wrong?"

Gibbs smirked, "Well, there's a first time for everything… but I'm not wrong."

Vance nodded, "Alright. Do it your way. If you need anything, let me know."

"Will do."

"And when you get that file…"

"I'll send you a copy."

Gibbs left and Vance let out a deep breath… This wasn't gonna be an easy case.

* * *

><p>Ziva looked over at Tim. She had been on the phone trying to find out where Former-Detecive Donovin was now. Right now she was on hold. She became worried as she stared at her friend. He was just sitting there, staring at his computer screen, but it didn't look as though he was actually seeing anything. She couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking.<p>

_"Who… Who are you?" Tim asked the black blob in front of him._

_"The monsters you dream about," It replied, then it turned to the other blob, "Which one do you want for right now?"_

_"Hmm… That one."_

_"Good choice."_

_The blob grabbed Tim's arm and started pulling him up, "Undo his chains."_

_Devon started to cry, "No! No, don't take him!"_

_"Shut up!"_

_"No! Leave him here! Don't hurt him!"_

_"Why won't he shut up?"_

_"I don't know."_

_All this time, Tim was trying to get away from the blob that was grabbing his arm._

_"Maybe we should take him instead."_

_"You sure?"_

_"Yeah, we'll take the other one later… That way, when we bring him back, he won't be yellin' out anymore." They both began to laugh… It was the most evil laugh Tim had ever heard._

_Tim was pushed back onto the floor, so hard that he hit his head and everything started to blur._

_Devon was grabbed. One undid the cuffs while the other held onto him tight._

_"No… please..." Tim begged, but it only came out in a whisper. Devon looked back at him as they carried him out, and they're eyes locked._

_"Please... stop..."_

* * *

><p><strong>I know things are a little confusing right now with the flashbacks and stuff, but that's how it's supposed to be :) Hope you guys liked the chapter! Let me know what you think.<strong>


	5. While You Sleep

Tim waited outside while an officer did a check of his apartment. Tim found it completely unnecessary, but it wasn't like he actually had a choice.

"All clear," The officer said as he stepped out of the house.

"Thanks. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Agent McGee. I'll be driving by the apartment throughout the night, so don't worry about… whoever I need to be doing checks for."

"I'm not worried… but thanks."

The officer nodded and left, and Tim went inside.

He took a deep breath as he closed the door behind him. He locked it, not because he feared someone would try to get in, just because that's what he always did.

He threw his jacket, gun, badge, cell phone and keys on the floor then walked over to his computer chair and sat down.

It had been such a long day, filled with things that he never ever wanted to think about again. He rested his elbows on his desk and rubbed his tired eyes.

_The door began to open so Tim quickly pretended to be asleep. He could hear footsteps and… whimpering?_

_There were the evil laughs again, as something was dropped onto the floor._

_Tim could hear the chains and the cuffs._

_"I don't think I've ever had so much fun."_

_"Yeah. He was all wiggly at first, but, once he stopped fightin', it was a blast."_

_"Awe! Look at that other one, layin' all curled up, sleeping. Let's come back for him later."_

_"You're the boss."_

_The footsteps could be heard again, but this time they were going farther and farther away, then the door shut back and the deadbolts were turned._

_Tim slowly opened his eyes, making sure it wasn't a trick. Once he saw the room was clear, he crawled over to Devon._

_He looked at what Devon was wearing. It wasn't his same clothes. It was some old t-shirt that looked like it had never been washed. It was way too big, hanging down to Devon's knees._

_Devon was facing away from Tim, so Tim gently touched his shoulder, "Devon," He said softly._

_More whimpers could be heard. Tim could tell he was trying to hide the fact that he was crying._

_"Devon, what happened?"_

_"N… Nothing. G-Go away."_

_"Did they hurt you?"_

_"Just g-get away from me," Devon replied, pulling away from Tim's touch._

_Tim moved his hand back, but he stayed by Devon. He didn't know what was going on. What could they have done to him?_

_"Whatever happened, Devon, I'm sorry," Tim said softly._

_"F-For w-what?"_

_"They were supposed to take me. Not you."_

_"It's n-not your f-fault, Tim. I'm… I'm tired. I'm g-gonna sleep."_

_"Okay," Tim replied. He crawled back to his side of the room and crouched in the corner, watching Devon, and listening to him cry until he fell asleep._

Tim's head popped up and he began to look around, at first confused as to where he was, then he realized he fell asleep at his desk.

"Not a good way to sleep," He said as he rubbed his aching neck.

The dream he had just awoken from was still clear in his mind… although he wished it weren't. He didn't understand back then what had happened to Devon, but he knew now- and just the thought made him so angry that he could punch his hand through the wall and never feel any pain.

Forcing himself to calm down and get the dream out of his mind, Tim looked at his watch. It was five o'clock in the morning. He sighed and went into his bedroom so he could get a shower and get ready for work.

He froze when he saw something laying on his bed. It looked like a sheet of paper.

His heart began to race, _'Maybe it's something I left here yesterday. I don't remember leaving anything on my bed. I never do that. Did he come before I got home last night? Wouldn't the officer have seen it here? Maybe he didn't think it was important… or maybe it wasn't here until now.'_

Remembering his gun was in the hallway, by the door, Tim slowly backtracked, staying as quiet as he could. He got his gun, made sure it was loaded, then went back into his bedroom.

After clearing the bedroom, bathroom and closet, Tim set his gun on his bed, and picked up the paper.

'My, my how you've grown. You were so little the last time we met. I know you can't answer me right now, but I wonder… Do you remember me? Do you remember my face? Do you remember _our_ face? What about what you left behind? Do you ever think about that? If not, maybe you should. Until next time, I send my love.'

Tim felt like he was going to vomit, but instead he went and got his cell phone, then speed dialed Gibbs' number.

Tim wondered if Gibbs would still be asleep, seeing they didn't need to be at work for about an hour and a half.

"Gibbs," He answered on the third ring.

"Did I wake you up, Boss?" Tim asked.

"I've been up for an hour, McGee. Something wrong?"

Tim took a deep breath, "I got a letter. Found it this morning."

"I thought all your mail went to NCIS?"

"It does… It wasn't sent in the mail."

Gibbs paused, "What are you sayin', Tim?"

"I fell asleep at my desk last night. I never went to my bedroom. I woke up not too long ago and… and I found a letter on my bed."

"Don't move, McGee," Gibbs replied quickly, "I'll be there in ten minutes."

* * *

><p><em>Exactly<em> ten minutes later, Gibbs arrived.

"Hey, Boss," Tim said as he opened his door, "…And Tony… and Ziva."

They all came inside and Tim closed the door. "Boss, what are-"

"Where's the letter?"

Tim went into his kitchen, "I put it in a zip-lock bag so it wouldn't get messed up." He picked up the bag and took it to Gibbs.

Gibbs read it, then looked at Tim, "Any idea what it means?"

Tim shook his head, "No. Not at all."

Gibbs nodded, "Okay. Who's the officer that checked your place last night?"

"Officer Shiller."

"Got his number?"

Tim reached in his back pocket, "Yeah, here."

He handed Gibbs the number and Gibbs dialed it on his phone.

"Officer Shiller?.. Agent Gibbs. NCIS… Did you see anything on Tim's bed last night?.. You sure?.. Okay." Gibbs hung up and looked at Tony and Ziva, "Get to work on checkin' the place for prints. Tim, pack your bags."

"What? Why?"

"Because, until this is over, you're staying with me."

"I- I don't understand, Boss."

"The letter wasn't there last night when you got home, Tim…" Gibbs took a deep breath, "He came in while you were asleep."

* * *

><p><strong>So sorry that updates have been taking longer than usual. I've been super busy. Me and my mom are getting everything ready for a huge yardsale we're having soon, plus my dad is taking me out driving every day. There's more then that too, but those are the main time consuming things. Unfortunately, real life gets in the way of writing sometimes :( It sucks! haha<strong>

**Anyway, thanks so much for reading and reviewing :)**


	6. Waiting

"I don't understand," Tim began as he and Gibbs rode back to headquarters, "How could he get in my house without me knowing? I was sleeping at my desk! I was _right by_ the door!"

Gibbs veered onto the side of the road, pressing down hard on the break, bringing them to a quick stop.

Tim looked over at Gibbs, "What are you doing?" He asked nervously.

Gibbs sighed and looked at Tim, "You're hiding something from me, McGee."

"What are you talking about?"

"You remember more than you're telling me. McGee, you can't hide stuff from me. Not with this."

Tim looked away from him, "I'm not hiding anything."

"Don't give me that crap, McGee!" Gibbs paused, forcing himself to calm down. Becoming impatient wasn't going to help matters any, "Nothing you can tell me will be something I haven't heard before, Tim. Talk to me."

Tim took a deep breath. He turned back to Gibbs, "One was a guy and one was a girl. I-I don't remember what they look like, I j-just remember their voices. I can o-only remember little pieces of b-being there. I d-dream about it when it gets around th-the time I was t-taken." Tim stopped for a moment and looked down at his feet. He took a few deep breaths to try and get rid of his stutter, even though he knew it wasn't going to work.

"When were you taken?"

"Middle of June. It'll be twenty-three years… I escaped after… I don't know how long I was there. I _really_ d-don't remember," Tim could feel tears coming to his eyes, but he refused to let them fall, "Devon… He-He couldn't get away. I tried to g-get him to come with me, but I-I couldn't wait much longer. He told me t-to go ahead and h-he'd catch up, b-but he never came!"

Gibbs could see that Tim was breathing harder and his stutter was becoming progressively worse. He was clearly becoming more and more upset as he talked about it.

"How did you get away?"

"They were drunk…"

_"Lock 'em back up!" The woman yelled._

_"Move, boys! Walk!"_

_"I'm w-walking," Tim replied as he slowly made his way back to the room, shivering. He was having to hold onto Devon, who could barely walk._

_The man grabbed Tim by the neck and pushed him forward, "Then walk faster!"_

_"I-I'm sorry," He said quietly._

_"Stop apologizing you idiot! Just shut up and walk."_

_Tim continued shivering as he walked to the room, Devon on one side and the man on the other. The woman had gone into another room._

_Tim and Devon were pushed into the room and down to the ground. The man placed the cuffs on both of the boys, but he didn't lock either of them... nor did he lock the door.  
><em>

_The man left and Tim quickly removed the cuff from his ankle and went over to Devon, who was laying motionless on the floor. Tim shook him, "Devon, Devon."_

_"What?" Devon asked, already half asleep._

_"They didn't cuff us! They didn't lock the door either. We can get out!"_

_Devon slowly turned towards Tim. His face was black and blue with bruises, "I don't… think I… can walk."_

_"You have to. I'll help you."_

_"I'm hurting," Devon said, tears rolling down his face._

_"I know, Devon. But, once we're out, they can't hurt us anymore. Just put your arm around me and I'll help you."_

_Tim helped Devon wrap his arm around his shoulder, then they stood up. Tim, who was a couple of inches shorter than Devon, had to practically drag him along._

_Tim slowly opened the door, peaking out into the dark, cement-wall hallway to make sure it was clear._

_"Okay, let's go."_

_"Which way?" Devon asked._

_"Uh…" Tim looked back and forth, "Right. Let's go right."_

_"We've never… been that way," Devon replied._

_"I know," Tim began walking that way, holding onto Devon so he wouldn't fall, "Let's get outta here."_

Tim became quiet, just staring straight ahead. Gibbs could tell he was remembering a lot of things that he hadn't thought about in a long time.

"They caught him?" Gibbs asked, then clarified, "Devon?"

"We got out of the building. We were surrounded by woods," Tim shook his head, "I d-didn't know which way to go, I just knew we _had_ to go… and fast. I started r-running with Devon still holding onto my shoulder, barely able to walk. We got pretty far into the woods and he just stopped. He told me he couldn't go any farther… h-he needed to rest. I told him that we couldn't," Tim continued, becoming louder as the story went on, "I told him we had to keep going, but he c-couldn't! He had me prop him up a-against a tree. He said to j-just keep going straight ahead and h-he'd catch up… I finally got to a road. Some trucker stopped and… and the next thing I knew I-I was at the hospital. The police went to the building and they searched the woods, but… but Devon was never found. Neither was the man."

"And the woman?"

"She was inside the building. She had choked on her own vomit and died."

Gibbs took in a deep breath. Finding out all of this about Tim was so hard to take in. So… disturbing.

Gibbs looked at Tim, "Tim, look at me," He said, knowing that Tim was embarrassed to make eye contact after revealing so much of his past.

Tim hesitantly looked over at him.

"We _will_ find this guy," Gibbs promised, "We will."

* * *

><p>"It's just… so weird," Tony said as he began dusting for prints on Tim's doorknob.<p>

"What is?" Ziva asked.

"All of this. I mean, McGee's always been quiet about his past but I… I never thought this was why. I figured it was just cause he's a private person."

"It is difficult to think about. We do not even know what all he went through with… whoever this is."

"How could someone do that? How could someone hurt little kids?.. How could someone hurt _Tim_? He's like a puppy!"

"I do not know, Tony." Ziva turned from Tony and went to Tim's room to begin checking for prints in there.

They had been working for twenty minutes when Ziva's phone began to ring.

"Ziva David," She answered, "…Yes… You have?.. What is the address?.. Thank you."

"Who was that?" Tony asked as she hung up.

"An officer I contacted to help me in finding Donovin. He just gave me his address. It is about half an hour from here."

"I'll finish here, you go."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. We need that file."

Ziva nodded, "Alright. See you later."

"Later."

* * *

><p>Ziva knocked on Donovin's door, then waited for an answer.<p>

A few seconds later the door opened to a man in his early to mid-seventies, with silver hair and a permanently frumpy look on his face. "I don't want to buy anything!" He exclaimed then went to close the door. Ziva stopped him.

"I don't have anything to sell."

"Well, then I don't wanna be a Jehovah's Witness." Again he went to slam the door, and again Ziva stopped him.

"I'm not here for that Detective Donovin."

That name drew his curiosity. He hadn't been called _"Detective"_ in a long time.

"What do you want?"

"I'm NCIS Special Agent David. I'm here about Timothy McGee."

His whole demeanor changed at that moment. "Come inside."

Ziva stepped into the house, which could have doubled as an antique store. Everything looked at least twenty years old.

"Why are you here about Tim?" He asked as they stood near the front door.

"Tim is now an agent at NCIS. He is my partner and his case has come back into light."

Donovin's eyebrows furrowed, "What are you talkin' about?"

"Whoever took Tim when he was young is now contacting him again. Tim told us that you took the file right before you retired… Do you still have it?"

Donovin shook his head, "I can't believe this is comin' back up again. How's Tim?"

"He is… upset, but strong."

"Yeah, you can say that again," He turned around and began walking off, then motioned for Ziva to come along, "Follow me."

They went into his den, where all of his papers were kept. He got a key out of his desk drawer and went over to a filing cabinet. "Did Tim tell you everything about when he was there?"

"No, he did not. He said he could not remember."

Donovin opened the cabinet and began looking for the file, "That kid… _both_ of those kids, they went through hell, Agent David. Now, I don't know if Tim really doesn't remember, but if he doesn't," He paused as he pulled out a thick file and held it out for Ziva to take, "It's for the best."

Ziva nodded and took the file, "Thank you, Detective Donovin."

"Just Elijah, Agent David."

Ziva smiled, "Just Ziva."

They walked back out to the front door.

"You need anything, you let me know," Donovin said as he opened the door for Ziva.

"Thank you, I will."

"And Ziva?"

"Yes?"

"If you don't find that man soon, he _will_ find Tim, and he'll finish what he started."

* * *

><p>Instead of going into work, Gibbs decided to bring Tim to his house. Tim looked exhausted and Gibbs could tell he needed to rest.<p>

"Upstairs, second door to your left," Gibbs said as he and Tim entered Gibbs' house.

Tim nodded, "Okay. Thanks for letting me stay here, Boss."

"No problem," He replied, then added, "You'll be safe here, McGee."

"I know."

"Go upstairs, get some sleep. I'm gonna go into work."

"You sure you don't need me to come in with you?"

"_Sleep_, McGee."

"Yes, Boss."

Tim went upstairs and Gibbs made him a cup of coffee, then he left… Neither of them knew that the man was already upstairs… waiting.

* * *

><p><strong>I was gonna update yesterday, but for some reason I had no desire to write until late in the evening. But, better late than never, right?<strong>

**Hope you guys enjoyed :) Let me know!**


	7. Should've

"Nothing from the picture or the envelope?" Gibbs asked Abby as they talked on the phone.

"Nope. No prints. No anything. Can I be told what this is about now?"

Ziva walked into the bullpen and Gibbs hung up.

"I have the file," Ziva said.

"Pull up a chair."

Ziva set the file down in front of Gibbs, then brought over her desk chair and sat across from him.

Gibbs opened the file. The first thing he picked up were pictures that had been taken of Tim at the hospital. He shook his head, cursing silently as he looked at the bruises on the young boy. Not so much on his face, but his arms, torso, back and legs were covered.

After Gibbs finished with the photos, he handed them to Ziva.

She gasped, "Oh my God," She said as she looked through them. The look on Tim's face in the pictures were just pitiful. You could see the pain in his pale green eyes. "I can not believe this is McGee. And I can not believe anyone would do this to him."

"The world is full of evil, David."

"Yes, I know… It is just more difficult when it is one of our own."

"Yeah…" Gibbs sighed, "I know."

He picked up the report where everything that had happened to Tim was written down. "They chained his ankle and kept him in a room with no windows and six deadbolts on the door… They didn't let him eat and barely gave him any water… They would fill a bathtub with water and hold him underneath for long periods of time… They beat him…" Gibbs shook his head and angrily dropped the papers onto his desk, "They molested him."

Ziva took a deep breath, "Elijah was right."

"What?"

"He said that Tim and Devon had gone through hell… He was right."

* * *

><p>Almost an hour later, Tony was finishing up at Tim's place. He was looking around to make sure he didn't miss anything when he saw something on the top of Tim's computer. He walked over to the small black thing that sat there beside the webcam.<p>

His eyebrows furrowed as he picked it up. It didn't take long for him to figure out what it was. He quickly got out his phone and dialed Gibbs' number, then left out of the apartment.

"Yeah, it's Gibbs."

"Boss, we've got a problem," Tony said as he hurried to his car.

"What is it, Tony?"

"I found a listening device in Tim's apartment. It's like the one's _we_ use, Boss. He didn't even have to be close by to hear."

Gibbs stood up and quickly got his keys, "Grab your gear," He said to Ziva, then continued talking to Tony, "DiNozzo, McGee is at my place. I took him there to get some sleep. If this guy heard us, then…"

"On my way, Boss," Tony said, not even wanting to think that Tim might be in imminent danger.

* * *

><p>Tony got to Gibbs' house first. There was no way he was going to wait for backup.<p>

He slowly opened the front door. The fact that it was unlocked surprised him. Sure, Gibbs always kept it unlocked... _unless_ something like this was going on.

Tony walked through the first floor. Not a sound could be heard. Nothing was out of place. No one was there.

He made his way down to the basement. Again, nothing.

Going back up to the main floor, Tony thought he heard something, but it turned out to be the house settling.

He quietly walked up the steps to the second floor. He went to the first room. Nothing. Then the second room. "Oh my God."

Suddenly there was a noise behind him that was definitely _not_ the house settling. He quickly turned around, gun ready to fire.

He sighed in relief when he saw Gibbs and Ziva standing there.

Gibbs and Ziva looked at the room, then Gibbs slowly walked inside.

"I am going to check the last room," Ziva said, already knowing it would be empty.

"Boss, I-"

"He was supposed to be safe here," Gibbs said angrily as he looked at the destroyed bedroom.

"You couldn't have known, Boss."

"It doesn't matter, DiNozzo. Expect the unexpected. I always say that! I should've checked the house before I left."

"He probably came after you left."

Gibbs shook his head, "Someone should've been here with him."

Tony sighed, "Boss, no one had any idea that this guy knew where you were taking Tim. Now, you can stand here and name all the things you _should've_ done, but I know you and that doesn't sound like the Gibbs I know."

Gibbs turned to face Tony, and for a moment Tony thought he was either gonna be fired, or his head was going to be hit so hard it would fall off.

"You're right," Gibbs replied.

"I am?" Tony asked in shock.

Gibbs nodded, "Yeah. I'm gonna find that freak, and when I do," He walked past Tony and out of the room, "I'm gonna kill him."

* * *

><p>Tim groaned as he began to wake up. His eyes slowly opened. He found it hard to keep them open at first. They felt like one hundred pound weights.<p>

He was finally able to keep his eyes open and look around.

He, unknowingly, stopped breathing as he looked around the room. It was exactly like the one he was kept in before, when he was only ten.

He looked down to see that his ankle was chained, just like it had been before.

"No, no, no, no," He repeated to himself.

He couldn't help the memories that flooded into his mind. The memories that the room brought back. That being chained brought back. Things he had forgotten, things he never wanted to remember.

"No, no, no, no."

The door to the room began to unlock, causing Tim to quickly stand up. No way was he going to shy back into the corner as he had done when he was younger.

The door opened and a man stepped inside.

Tim stared at the man. "Who are you?" He asked, knowing that this was not the same guy who was at Gibbs' place.

There was no reply. Instead, the man just stood there, staring back at Tim.

Tim could feel his heart racing the longer the staring match lasted. He wanted to look away, but for some reason he couldn't.

Then, it clicked. "Oh my God… Devon?"

* * *

><p><strong>To answer a question that will undoubtably want to be asked by someone, yes, I will be writing the moment where Tim is taken. It will just be in flashback form.<strong>

**I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter :) Thank you for all the reviews!**


	8. Evan

Tim couldn't believe what his eyes were seeing. There was no way he was looking at the adult version of his best friend.

"My name's not Devon," He said, finally speaking.

No matter how Tim wanted to believe it wasn't Devon, he knew it was. "What's your name?" He asked.

"Evan."

Tim nodded slowly, _'He went from Devon to Evan?'_ He thought to himself,_ 'How original.'_

Tim wasn't sure how to play this game. Devon had been with this man for twenty-three years. And he hadn't _seen_ Tim in twenty-three years. Tim knew he couldn't just quickly break him out of this "spell" he was under.

"Okay, Evan," Tim said, "Why am I here?"

"Because he never got to finish."

"Finish what?"

"Killing you."

Trying to ignore his pounding heart, Tim continued with the questions, "Why does he want to kill me?"

"He never got to finish."

"I know. You said that before. Why does he want to finish? Why didn't he just leave me alone?" Tim couldn't help his voice raising as he spoke. He was already sick and tired of being in that room.

"The questions only make it hurt worse." With that, "Evan" opened the door and left.

"Wait! What are you talking about? Hey!" Tim tried to re-gain his attention, but it didn't work. He was now alone in this room.

Not one to just wait around for something horrible to happen to him, Tim began pulling at the chain that helped to keep him imprisoned in this room.

As he pulled the chain, he talked to himself, "So, what's the plan, McGee? You get yourself free of the chain, then what? Somehow magically unlock the the six deadbolts on the door?" Tim pulled harder, breaking out in a sweat as he did so. Nothing was moving. Nothing was loosening. There was no getting free of the chain… but that didn't stop Tim from trying. He couldn't seem to let himself stop.

"How'd you… let it come to this, you idiot? Thinking… you'd be safe… at Gibbs' place? You're not… safe anywhere." Now he was becoming out of breath from pulling so hard.

"I wonder… if they know… I'm gone. They'll be able… to find where… I'm at…" Tim laughed humorlessly, "I don't… even know where… I'm at- Ow!" Tim quickly dropped the chains and looked at his hands. They were raw and beginning to bleed from gripping so hard as he pulled on the chain.

Just looking at how he had already hurt himself made Tim extremely angry. He began cursing… at the chain. Telling it off for hurting him, for existing, for not realizing what a horrible thing it was doing right now.

Then, just as randomly as he had begun, he stopped.

Out of breath, thirsty, tired, and now injured, Tim realized he had only been awake in this room for a little under ten minutes and he was already going crazy.

Tim took deep breaths, trying to get his heart rate back to normal, as he walked to the back of the room. He pressed his back against the wall and slid down. With his knees pressed up against his chest, Tim began to rock. Not because he was going insane, but because he was nervous and couldn't seem to sit still.

He tried to think positive. Tried to remember that he was on the best team at NCIS. The team who would stop at nothing to get their team member back. The team who could seem to do the impossible. Not only was it the best team at NCIS, but probably the best team out of_ all_ the federal agencies… He wasn't one to brag, but they did seem to be able to solve cases that the FBI, CIA, and every other alphabet agency couldn't. Yes, that was his team. They'd come barging through the door soon. They'd save him. Gibbs would make sure he was okay, Tony would try to lighten the mood with a joke, and Ziva would threaten to kill the man that brought him here… if she hadn't killed him already.

That was how Tim thought for about the first minute and a half… Then the memories took over.

_"Let's take the other one this time," The woman said as she entered the room._

_The man entered behind her- and this time, he had a face. "Alright, like I said before, you're the boss."_

_Tim was curled up in his corner of the room, his heart pounding._

_Devon's eyes widened, "No!" He yelled as the couple made their way to Tim._

_They both stopped and looked over at him._

_"What did you say?" The woman asked._

_"No… Take me again."_

_Tim glanced over at Devon and Devon glanced at Tim. Tim gave him a "shut up" look, but it was clear Devon wasn't going to listen._

_The boys were only two months apart, but with everything, Devon acted like the older brother. He always stood up for Tim with bullies at school, and if they were going to get in trouble for something, Devon would make sure to take the larger chunk of the blame._

_"Why would I wanna do that? You're nothing but used trash now," The faceless woman turned back to the man, "You heard me! Take him!"_

_The man nodded and began taking the cuffs off of Tim's ankles._

_"No! Just take me now and leave him alone!"_

_The woman stormed over to Devon, who was propped up against the wall. She slapped him across the face, "Shut up! It's not your turn. But, since you seemed to enjoy it so much, I'll make sure we spend extra time with you next time."_

_Her evil laugh rang throughout the room as Tim was grabbed up by the arm and forcefully pulled out of the room._

_Devon tried to get up, tried to help his friend, but he couldn't. He was too weak._

_Tim looked all around as he was being taken from one room to the next. Not that there was anything to see. The walls in the hallway were exactly like the walls in the room he had been closed up in for God knows how long._

_Tim froze when they reached the room and he saw a bed inside. He didn't know of what all they could do to him, but he knew that that couldn't be good._

_"Get in there," The man said, pushing Tim through the doorway._

_Tim stumbled into the room. The man and woman came inside after him, closing the door behind them._

_"Take off your clothes," The man said._

_Tim's eyes widened, "Wh-What?"_

_"You heard me!"_

_Tim just stood there, his heart feeling like it was going to beat out of his chest._

_The man's anger grew. He stormed over to Tim and backhanded him across the face._

_Tim shrieked and fell to the ground._

_"Get up!" The man yelled._

_Tim knew he better listen. He didn't want to, but he definitely did not want to make either of them any angrier than they already were._

_He slowly stood back up._

_"Now, take. off. your. clothes."_

_With tears in his eyes, and slowly rolling down his face, Tim took off his clothes. He felt so humiliated. So terrified._

_"Let's take it slow with this one," The woman said, "The happiness was over too quick with the other one."_

_The man nodded, "Whatever you say, darlin'."_

_They both started walking over to Tim. Tim responded by backing up until he reached the wall. Now there was nowhere to go. Nothing to stop them from-_

"No!" Tim yelled, opening his eyes. He hadn't even realized he had closed them.

"Already yellin' and I haven't even touched you yet."

Tim gasped and jumped up. He had no idea the man was in the room with him.

"Wh-What do you want?" Tim asked, wishing his stutter would go away.

"You, of course."

"Why?"

"Cause I never got to finish before."

"Finish w-what? You didn't f-finish with Devon. He's s-still here."

"I didn't get to finish with Devon because of you makin' your little escape. See, I would've killed him, but then my wife died, you ran off, and he was all I had. I didn't wanna be alone," The man walked up closer to Tim. So close that Tim could smell his horrible, rotten breath, "So, I kept him. I trained him-"

"You brainwashed him."

"I made him better. I made him mine… By the way, his name's Evan now. Not Devon. Anyway, now that I don't have my woman to boss me around, and I have a little helper, it's time to complete the job."

The man took his hand and placed it on Tim's cheek. Just the touch made Tim want to vomit.

The man smiled evilly at Tim, "Now it's time for the fun to begin."

* * *

><p><strong>I'm pretty sure this is my first time writing a scene like this with no cuts to the rest of the team. I hope you guys liked it (well, as much as you can with the things I'm putting Tim through). I've come to point where I'm no longer ashamed to admit, I like torturing Tim... You know, maybe if they gave him something to do in the show (besides get used by women) then I, along with countless others) wouldn't feel the need to torture him so.<strong>

**Anyway, let me know what you think of the chapter :) Thanks!**


	9. Not Like Him

Tim pushed the man's hand away from him. He didn't want that scum touching him. "Stay away from me, you freak," Tim said through gritted teeth.

The man laughed. It was the same evil laugh that Tim remembered from years ago. "Now, you know I'm not gonna do that. I just have to figure out what I wanna do first."

Tim realized at that moment that he was moving backwards. He was already up against the wall, but now he was moving back towards the left corner of the room. The man was matching him step by step, keeping the same distance between them.

"My friends- my t-teammates- they'll be here soon. They'll find me and k-kill you."

"No, they won't. They don't have any idea where you are. Even if they do find you, it won't be for a long time, and you won't be alive by then either."

Without any warning, the man punched Tim right in the gut.

Tim doubled over in pain, coughing as he tried to catch his breath.

The man put his arm on Tim's shoulder, "Oh, I decided that _that's_ what I wanted to do first. Sorry for the lack of warning," He said with a laugh.

What the man didn't realize is that Tim was no longer a helpless ten year old boy.

Tim quickly stood up straight, pushed the man's arm off of him and punched him in the face.

The man took a few steps back as he put a hand over his eye, groaning angrily in pain.

It seemed like a good idea at the time… then Tim realized that he was chained, unable to escape, clearly smaller than the man in front of him, he was already exhausted, his hands were injured from pulling at the chains- making any movements, like punching someone, painful, and, including Devon, he was outmanned… Yeah, he was screwed.

The man was glaring at Tim, breathing so hard that Tim was sure fire was going to start coming out of his nose. He came back up to Tim, once again punching him in the gut. Tim barely had time to react. As he bent over, shielding his stomach from another hit, the man grabbed onto Tim's shoulders and shoved him back. It was so hard that Tim's head slung back and slammed against the wall. His vision suddenly doubled and he struggled to keep his eyes open, and to stand. He soon lost that struggle as he slid down the wall, and fell unconscious.

* * *

><p>As Gibbs, Tony and Ziva walked out of the elevator and into the bullpen they were met with Abby standing there. Her arms were crossed and she had a glare on her face.<p>

"What is it, Abby?" Gibbs asked, not having time to deal with her huffy mood.

"Where have you guys been? It's almost nine o'clock! I thought something had happened to all of you. I kept calling, but no one answered their phones. Where's Tim?" She was speaking so fast that she didn't take a breath between sentences.

Gibbs took a deep breath. He couldn't keep Tim's secret from her any longer. They were going to need her help and she couldn't be left in the dark.

Gibbs turned to Ziva, "You and Tony go over the file."

Ziva nodded, "Yes, Gibbs."

Gibbs turned and started walking towards the conference room, "Abby, come with me."

Tony watched them as they walked away, "She's gonna freak... Having to learn about his past_ and_ the fact that he's missing," He shook his head, "I'd hate to be Gibbs."

Ziva grabbed Tim's file from Gibbs' desk, "She will no doubt be very upset," She said, then handed part of the paperwork to Tony, "We need to go over all of this."

Tony looked down at the papers and walked back to his desk. "It feels wrong," He said as he sat down and began reading.

Ziva looked up from the papers she had, "What?"

"Reading all of this. It's too… personal."

"Tony, you love getting into peoples personal lives."

"This is different."

Ziva sighed, "Yes, that is true."

They both went back to reading, searching for any clues as to where Tim might be. About five minutes went by before the silence was broken.

"Oh my God," Tony said, not even realizing he said it out loud.

"What is it?"

"He- He was molested by those freaks!"

"Yes, I know," Ziva replied, "Gibbs told me earlier when we were reading."

"But, Ziva, I- I…"

Ziva had never seen Tony like this before. She got up and walked over to his desk, "What is it, Tony?"

Tony looked up at her and she could have sworn she saw tears in his eyes, "All those jokes I always made… The ones about him being gay. They were just jokes, but… but he was touched by this man! Every time I made one of those jokes, he… he-"

"Tony," Ziva said, stopping him, "They were _just_ jokes, like you said. If he would have been hurt by them, he would have stopped you."

"He told me to stop all the time, Zee, but I figured it was because I annoyed him… so I did it more."

"Tony, I am sure Tim does not have any hard feelings against you for that. He knows you. He knows you never would have made those jokes had you known."

Tony let out a deep breath, "Doesn't make me feel any better."

"Then let us work at _finding_ Tim, so you can apologize to him and let him tell you that he was and is not offended. Okay?"

Tony nodded, "Yeah."

* * *

><p>Abby sat there, eyes wide and speechless as she stared blankly ahead.<p>

"Abby, did you hear me?"

After a moment, she nodded, "I just… I can't believe I never… I never knew."

"No one knew."

"I know, but… but I thought we told each other everything. I just- is that why he's not here? He's in protective custody?"

Gibbs took a deep breath, "No, Abby. He's not in protective custody."

"Then where is-" She stopped, figuring it out mid-sentence, "No. No, he can't be… He's missing isn't he?"

"Abby-"

Abby quickly stood up and began pacing as tears came to her eyes, "No, not Timmy. What's this person gonna do to him, Gibbs? What's gonna happen? You have to find him!"

Gibbs came over to her and stopped her by putting his hands on her shoulders, "We're gonna find him, Abby. But I need you to calm down."

"What? I can't calm down! Not when he's out there somewhere with some freak who's hurting him!"

"Do you want to help Tim, Abby?"

"Of course I do."

"Then you need to calm down and get ready to do a lot of work, okay? Tim was at my house when he was tak-"

"What!"

"Abby, calm."

She nodded, "Right."

"Tim was at my house when he was taken. There was a pretty big mess there. We've got people there now, they're going to bring everything in. I'll need it checked for fingerprints and everything else, okay?"

Abby nodded again, "If it'll help find Tim."

"It will. I know you have a lot more questions, but I don't have time to answer them right now."

"Okay… but Gibbs?"

"Yeah?"

"How much time… do you think Tim has?"

Gibbs sighed, "Not a whole lot, Abby."

* * *

><p>Tim began waking up to the feeling of a pounding headache. He groaned as he lifted his hand to feel the back of his head.<p>

He hissed in pain as he touched the swollen area, "You just had to punch him, didn't ya, McGee?" He said to himself.

His eyes were still fuzzy, and his stomach was very sore, as he moved into a sitting position.

Just then, Tim heard the door begin to unlock. His heart immediately began to pound as he waited for the man to walk in.

Instead he was met by Devon, who was carrying a bowl in his hands.

_'Let's see how this goes,'_ Tim thought.

"Devon," He began, simply to see how he'd react.

Devon walked up to him, "I told you before, my name's not Devon. It's Evan."

"Right, sorry. Evan?"

"What?"

"Who are you?"

Devon's eyebrows furrowed, "What are you talking about?"

Tim shrugged, "Who are you to… that man? How did you get here?"

"I'm David's son," He replied, "And me and Dad drove here."

"David? That's his name?"

Devon nodded.

"What's that?" Tim asked, pointing to the bowl.

Devon bent down in front of him, "Water. Want a drink?"

Tim was so thirsty. He had never wanted water so much in his life. "No."

"It's not poisoned," Devon replied. He lifted the bowl to his mouth and took a sip, "See?" He reached out and handed the bowl to Tim.

Tim took it and drank. The water was warm, but Tim didn't care. It tasted so good going down his extremely dry throat.

He drank all the water, then handed the bowl back to Devon, "Thank you."

"Yeah."

Devon began to walk away, but Tim wasn't done talking.

"Why are you doing this?" Tim asked.

Devon turned back around, "What?"

"Why are you doing this? You're not like him… David," Tim clarified, "…You're not like him."

Devon walked back up to Tim, "What do you mean?"

"He's a horrible person. I mean, do you not see this?" Tim said, motioning around the room with his arms. "He kidnapped me, _twice_, and now he's beating the crap outta me just so he can kill me. He's just… horrible!"

"Don't say that," Devon warned.

"Oh, come on, Devon. You really don't remember when we were kidnapped? You don't remember David and his wife or girlfriend leaving us in a room just like this? David is not your dad, Devon! He's a man who kidnapped you and raped you and-"

"Shut up!" Devon yelled suddenly. He threw the bowl against the wall and walked up to Tim. Before Tim could do anything, Devon kicked him in the stomach.

Already hurt from being punched earlier, Tim fell over onto his side as he wrapped his arms around his stomach. Devon continued kicking him, hurting both his stomach and his arms.

"Ah!" Tim yelled, "St- Stop! Stop!"

Devon finally stopped kicking. For a moment he just stared at Tim, who was curled up and trying to catch his breath.

"Next time, think before you open your mouth," Devon warned before leaving.

Tim was once again left alone. He knew for sure that he had at least one rib broken. His arms would soon be covered in bruises. He was in so much pain, and he knew that it wouldn't end anytime soon. If anything, it would only get worse.

* * *

><p><strong>I did not think I'd ever get this chapter written. Not because I had writer's block or anything, it's just that every time I would sit to write it, something would come up and I'd have to leave it for another time. I ended up writing it from 11pm-1am. It seems night is my only free time. Thankfully I suffer from insomnia :)<strong>

**Well, I hope you guys liked the chapter. Thanks for reading and reviewing! And YAY! we passed the 100 review mark AND this story is my most alerted :) Thank you guys!**


	10. Playing

"Got anything?" Gibbs asked as he came walking into the bullpen.

"I do," Ziva replied. "There is an address of where Tim and Devon were kept when they were kidnapped. Well, it is not really an address. More like directions."

Gibbs sighed, "Where, Ziva?"

"Oh. It is an old storage facility out in the middle of nowhere. It had been owned by the same person for thirty years, but they never touch it. In the report it says that the facility went out of business twenty-six years ago."

"It had been empty for three years when Tim and Devon were taken there then."

"Yes, that would be correct math, Tony," Ziva snapped. She took a deep breath, "I am sorry. I guess I am getting anxious."

"We all are," Tony replied.

"Let's go," Gibbs said, grabbing his gear.

"Go where?"

"To the storage place."

"You don't think the guy would be stupid enough to take Tim back to the same place, do you?"

"No, not the same place, but one like it. Ziva, call the detective that worked on McGee's case."

"Elijah."

"Yeah, have him meet us there. He can walk us through this better then that file can."

Ziva nodded and grabbed her stuff, then she and Tony followed Gibbs out.

* * *

><p>Tim was awakened by David throwing a bucket of water on his head. Tim jumped up into a sitting position, then gritted his teeth as to not scream in pain because of his injured ribs.<p>

He spit, getting the water out of his mouth, then ran his fingers through his hair.

"Hello, Timothy," David said with a wicked smile on his face.

Tim looked up at him, "What now?" He asked.

"Oh, don't tell me you're tired of playing already?"

"You call this _"playing"_?"

"I call this fun." David left out of the room for a moment, returning with handcuffs and a hanky. "You try to fight me, you're only gonna make it hurt worse," He said as he wrapped the hanky over Tim's eyes. Tim wanted to move, wanted to fight back, but he couldn't. His ribs were hurting so bad that even if he _did_ fight back, he knew there was no way he would win.

Now unable to see, Tim felt more vulnerable than ever before. He _hated_ it.

David grabbed Tim's arms, which were badly bruised, and cuffed his wrists. Tim heard a chain being messed with and figured it was David unchaining him so they could go to another room… Cause, Tim remembered, that that's what he did before. Different rooms for different things.

"Get up," David said, jerking on Tim's shoulder to get him to stand. Tim did as he was told, keeping his mouth shut tightly so he didn't groan in pain.

David led him to another room. Tim counted each step it took to get there. _'Twenty-four,'_ He thought as they stopped.

"Turn around," David said. Tim did so, slowly. He wasn't exactly sure of how much he was supposed to turn. "Stop. Sit."

Tim, very slowly, sat down. He wasn't sure if there would be a chair there or not, but there was.

David uncuffed Tim's hands. However, the relief of being without the cuffs was short-lived as his arms were forced up above his head and re-cuffed.

His heart began to pound. It had been okay up until this moment… Sure, he had been nervous, but not like now.

The chair he was sitting on was quickly pulled out from under him. The force from falling so quickly almost pulled his shoulders out of socket.

He was now hanging there, his knees couldn't quite reach the ground, making it all the more uncomfortable. He tried to pull himself up so he was standing, but being unable to use his arms, and his stomach muscles being so bruised, kinda made it impossible.

David took off Tim's blindfold and Tim took a quick look around the room- at least a look at what was in front of him. It was exactly like the other room, besides the handcuffs hanging from the ceiling.

Tim looked at David's hand as he pulled a cigarette and a lighter from his pocket. He knew what was coming. He knew it was going to hurt. He knew there was ultimately nothing he could do to get away from it.

David lit the cigarette then looked over at Tim, smiling as he looked him straight in the eyes. "I can't tell you how long I've waited to have you back with me."

"Twenty-three years, you idiot," Tim mumbled.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"I wouldn't be making rude remarks if I were in your position." David came up to Tim and placed the cigarette on his arm.

Tim held his breath, holding in his urge to scream.

"I'm impressed," David said, pulling back the cigarette, "You have a much higher threshold for pain then what you used to."

"I was ten then."

"True." Once again, David took the cigarette and placed it on Tim's arm. And again, and again, and again. He kept doing it over and over until there was ten marks on both Tim's right and left arm.

Tim never screamed. He wanted to. A few times he just knew he would, but he couldn't allow David that satisfaction.

Tim could see the anger in David's eyes. He wanted Tim to scream and yell, he wanted it so bad. But there was no way he was gonna beg for it. He wasn't a beggar.

After a moment, Tim started to laugh weakly, "You're just dying for me to yell, aren't you?"

"Shut up."

"You hate that I'm not the same as I was when I was ten. You hate that I won't just give you what you want to stop the pain."

"I said shut up!"

"It's eating you up."

David took the cigarette and put it in one of the previously burned spots. Tim clenched his jaw. That hurt about ten times worse than the first burn.

"Why are you even doing this, David? You could have lived the rest of your life without ever being caught."

David took a step back, "What did you just call me?"

"David." Tim paused. He could see David's whole facial expression change, "Oh, I guess I wasn't supposed to know that. Dev- _Evan_ told me."

David flicked the cigarette onto the ground and stomped on it. Then he turned around and left, leaving Tim hanging there.

* * *

><p>"Evan! Evan!" David yelled as he walked down the hall.<p>

"Yeah?"

"What were you doin' going into the room where that boy is?"

Devon looked down at the ground, like a little boy who had been caught taking a cookie from the cookie jar, "I'm sorry, Dad. I just thought he might need some water."

"That's not for you to decide. When he needs water, _I_ give it to him. You don't go near him. You understand me?"

Devon nodded, "Yes."

"You better."

* * *

><p>Gibbs, Tony and Ziva met up with Elijah at the storage facility. It was back in the middle of nowhere. Most people would never even know it existed.<p>

They all made introductions and shook hands, then got right to work.

"Alright, so you just want me to show you guys around?" Elijah asked.

"Yes," Ziva replied, "We figure that hearing what happened would make it clearer than reading a report."

Elijah nodded, "Okay. Let's go inside. I don't think this place has been locked in years so we can just go right in."

They let Elijah in first, followed by Gibbs, Ziva, and Tony.

"So, we go down this hallway," They walked for a moment, "And into this door." Elijah opened the door and they all stepped inside. "This is where the boys were kept most of the time. Those iron bars there," He said, pointing to them, "The chains that were cuffed to the boys ankles were hooked onto that. Tim was on the right, closer to the door. Devon on the left. They would sleep in here, drink in here, and try to clean themselves up after… Well, we'll get to that in a minute."

"How long were they here?" Tony asked.

"One week and three days… Uh, there were six dead bolts on the door, which you probably already knew. That's basically all to this room. Let's go to the next."

"You remember a lot about this case," Gibbs said as they walked to the next room.

"It's one of those that you just can't forget. You know what I mean, right?"

Gibbs nodded, "Oh yeah."

"Here," Elijah said, stepping into the next room. "They had a bed set up in here. It's also where the woman, Maria Roberts, was found dead. We think both she, and the man who's name we don't know, slept in here. This is also where," He paused, taking in a deep breath, "This is where Tim was molested and we believe Devon was raped."

"Raped?" Tony questioned.

Elijah nodded, "Found blood on the sheets. It wasn't Tim's and it matched Devon's blood type. Also, by what Tim told us about Devon coming into the room, unable to sit up, and seemed badly hurt but with no bruises… We came to the conclusion that he was raped."

"Why wasn't Tim raped then?" Ziva asked. She knew it sounded like an odd question, but it was a legitimate one.

"Tim told us when they came into the other room to get him, the woman said she wanted to go slower with him. That was the first time he was molested by them. They made him come into this room, take his clothes off and-"

"That's enough," Tony interrupted. He couldn't handle hearing anymore about that. Just being in the room made him feel sick.

Elijah nodded in understanding. "There's one more room. Come on." He led them to the last room and they all went inside. "They had a tin bathtub in here that they'd fill with water. They'd take Tim and push him into the water, then hold him down. Sometimes until he'd lose consciousness. Tim never saw them do this to Devon, and he said Devon never came back to the room wet, so we believe they only did this to Tim. Both boys, however, were beaten in this room. Sometimes together, sometimes separately."

Tony took a deep breath, "My God," He said, shaking his head.

Ziva looked around the room, imagining what it must have been like for both Tim and Devon. She couldn't seem to speak. She was too angry.

"They were tortured," Gibbs said as he thought about all the things that were done to the boys.

"Yes, they were," Elijah agreed.

"So he's had twenty-three years to figure out how to take Tim, where to hide him, and what all he wanted to do to him," Gibbs sighed, "That's just great."

* * *

><p><strong>I wanted to update this this morning, but I didn't have time to finish the chapter before helping my grandma with her yard sale. <strong>

**Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know :) Thanks for reading and reviewing!**


	11. The Tim You Know

Gibbs sat at his desk, staring at his phone. This was not a phone call he was going to enjoy… at all.

"You okay, Boss?" Tony asked from his desk, noticing the look on Gibbs' face.

Gibbs sighed, "No," He said as he picked up his phone. He picked up a piece of paper and dialed the number that was written on it.

It rang three times before a man answered, "Hello."

"Michael McGee?"

"This is Mike. Who am I speaking to?"

"I am Special Agent Gibbs. I wo-"

"You're Tim's boss," Mike replied, instantly becoming concerned. "What happened?"

"We believe Tim was taken by the same man that kidnapped him twenty-three years ago." Gibbs didn't want to overwhelm the man, but he was going to find out soon enough, and it was easier to get it out all at once. Plus, even from the little Gibbs had spoken with him, Mike didn't seem like the beat-around-the-bush type.

Mike didn't speak. Gibbs could hear him taking a deep breath.

Finally able to find his voice, Mike asked, "When?"

"Yesterday."

"My God."

"I would have called earlier, but we've been doing our best to find him as quickly as possible."

"I understand, Agent Gibbs. My wife and I will be there as soon as possible. If you need to know any information before we get there, call Sarah. She knows everything. Thank you for letting us know."

Mike hung up before Gibbs had a chance to say anything else.

"That is all?" Ziva asked as Gibbs hung up the phone, finding the conversation very short.

"He's a man of few words, apparently."

"Remind you of anyone?" Tony asked with a smirk, which he quickly got rid of when Gibbs gave him the death glare.

* * *

><p>Tim sucked in all the air he could before being forced back under the water. His burnt and bruised arms fought against David's strong ones. It was a battle he couldn't win, but he couldn't stop trying.<p>

He had been left to hang all night. His arms up above him, locked in the cuffs. Somehow, in the middle of the night, he managed to stand straight up, relieving some of the pressure from his arms, but he couldn't stay like that for very long. Soon enough he was in the same position he started in. His knees just barely unable to touch the ground. Tortured by the fact that they couldn't rest on the hard floor.

When Tim started resisting less and less, David would pull him up out of the water. Just long enough for Tim to take a few deep breaths and feel like he was going to be okay. Then, David would stick him back under. He did this five times, not wanting Tim to pass out just yet.

David pulled Tim out of the tub by his shirt. Tim gasped for breath, like a fish out of water as he laid on the floor, water dripping off of him.

He barely had time to catch his breath before David grabbed his shirt and lifted him to a sitting position. David made a fist and punched Tim in the face.

Tim grunted, unable to do anything more.

David punched him over and over until his nose, and bottom lip, were bleeding. His whole face would, no doubt, be badly bruised soon.

Tim didn't feel the last punch to his left eye. He had already fallen unconscious.

David let Tim drop back to the ground, then, _just for "fun"_, he kicked him in the back.

* * *

><p>Sarah rushed to NCIS as quickly as she could. The second Gibbs had told her what happened, she knew she had to go. Even before Gibbs told her that they needed more information on Tim and what happened before, she told him she was coming.<p>

"Agent Gibbs!" Sarah called out as she exited the elevator.

He stood up from his desk, and looked back, "Here, Sarah."

"Where do we need to go to talk?" She asked immediately.

"We'll go to the conference room."

Sarah nodded, "Lead the way."

They all got up and headed for the conference room. Her in-a-hurry mood did _not_ help the others to feel at ease.

* * *

><p>"You need to know everything?" She asked as they all sat down.<p>

"As much as you know," Gibbs replied.

Sarah nodded, "Okay…" She took a deep breath, something which she hadn't done since finding out Tim was kidnapped…_ again_. "I was only three and a half when Tim was taken, so I don't remember a lot about that. All I remember is my mom crying, my dad having this constant stern look on his face… and Tim not giving me my goodnight hugs," She laughed at the memory, "I loved those more than I loved Dad's goodnight stories, and Mom's goodnight tuck-in's… Anyway, all I remember about Tim coming back was that he didn't smile. He never smiled. I would ask him what was wrong, but he wouldn't answer. Mom or Dad would just get my mind onto something else…

"See, Tim has nightmares every year. It always starts at the same time. Always around the time he and Devon were taken. I would wake up to him screaming some nights. I knew something was wrong, but no one would tell me anything. When I was eleven, and Tim was seventeen- almost eighteen- he came home from college for the summer. I woke up one night to a noise in the bathroom. I walked in and saw Tim sitting in the bathtub, rocking back and forth. He was fully clothed, just staring straight ahead. I came up to him and touched his arm and he just started freaking out. Begging for me not to push him under the water," Tears came to Sarah's eyes, "I was so scared. I had never seen him like that before. No matter what happened, he was always calm with me. When I asked stuff, wanting to know what was going on- even though he wouldn't answer me- he was calm. Anyway, I started crying and Mom and Dad ran into the room. My dad calmed Tim down while my mom calmed me down. After that, I just wouldn't let it go. All day, _every day_ I asked Mom what was going on. What had happened? I think Tim heard me a couple of times cause he ended up going to Mom and telling her to tell me.

"After I knew about it, Tim would come to me when he had nightmares… that is the times he _wouldn't_ wake up screaming. Or he would call me if he was at college… He _still_ calls me even now. I never care for him to. He does it so Mom and Dad won't worry so much, although they worry about it anyway."

Everyone was trying to take in all that Sarah had told them. It was just becoming harder and harder to think about Tim's past… or what he was going through right now.

"I guess what I'm getting at," Sarah continued, "Is that… it took years to get Tim to the point where he is now. Just calling after a nightmare, staying on the phone a couple of minutes, then hanging up and moving on. _Years._ I know he's older now, but this still haunts him." She stared at Gibbs, "Agent Gibbs, I won't say that that man will kill him. I can't think like that. But, the longer he is _with_ that man, the longer it's going to take to get the Tim _you know_ back."

* * *

><p><strong>You know what messes with your brain? When you write three chapters to three different stories in the same day. I wrote this, a chapter to Ten Months, and a one-shot 'For You' in the same day. Sometimes I'd be reading one and be like, "What the heck?" Then I'd realize I was at a different story lol<strong>

**Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Let me know what you think!**


	12. Pleasure or Pain

At some point in time, Tim was drug back to the other room where he was chained and left to wake up whenever his body decided.

And, when he did begin to wake up, he was in unbelievable pain. When he went to open his eyes, only one would obey, the other was so swollen that he could barely see out of it.

He reached up with his hand to feel his face. He flinched as he touched the bruised, swollen and cut skin.

"You're not weak, you're not weak," He began repeating softly to himself as tears filled in his eyes. The last thing he wanted to do was cry. He couldn't show weakness to this man, he just couldn't! But right now, David wasn't there. He was alone. So he let some tears fall as he laid on the cold ground.

He wondered how it was that, before- when he was only ten- he seemed to have more energy than now. He got himself out last time, why not this time? Maybe it was because he had broken ribs this time, he was beaten more severely, and David was making sure Tim never saw anything other then the closed in rooms. He wouldn't know the way out of this place at all…

But he hated feeling like a victim. He hated knowing that all he could do was wait for the team to save him… if they even could.

Just then, the door began to unlock and David walked inside, carrying a chair and some rope. Tim closed his eyes, pretending he was still asleep, but David didn't buy it.

"You can pretend, Tim, but it's not gonna work."

Tim kept his eyes closed and listened as David's footsteps disappeared and returned, now bringing in something else. He listened as David set it all up. Then, for a moment, it was quiet. Just as Tim thought David left, he was jerked up off of the ground.

He gasped, then groaned in pain, unable to hide it.

David laughed as he placed Tim in the chair, making sure that he wasn't gentle as he did so.

Tim wasn't sure he could stay up in the chair, and David seemed to plan for that. Hence, the rope. He tied it around Tim before Tim could fall over, helping to hold him up.

Tim opened his one eye so he could see what was going on. Straight in front of him was a video camera with some cords attached to it that led to a laptop, which was on the floor.

Tim took a deep breath, which made him cough, which brought horrible pain to his chest.

David put a mask over his face, then went over to his laptop and pressed some buttons. "Let's get started."

* * *

><p>"Uh, Boss?"<p>

"What is it, Dekker?"

"I think you should see this."

"See what? I'm busy."

"The Director has had me going on sites, while I've been on desk duty, searching for child porn and… and I found this."

"Stop saying "this", Dekker. What is it?"

"I think it's that NCIS agent you know."

He jumped up from his desk and went over to Dekker's, "Oh my God," He said as he looked at the barely recognizable young man, "I gotta call Gibbs."

* * *

><p>Gibbs had just walked into Abby's lab to see how things were going when his phone rang.<p>

He glanced at the caller ID before answering, "What is it, Fornell?"

"Where are you?"

"In the lab. What's this about?"

"Put me on speaker."

"Why?"

"Just do it, Gibbs!"

Gibbs sighed and put his phone on speaker, "Okay. Now, what?"

"Abby, you there?"

Abby's eyebrows furrowed, "Yeah."

"Look up the website, prettypinkhappiness."

He was met with silence. "Humor me!"

"Com, org, net. Which one?"

"Net."

"Okay," Abby replied, turning to her computer and typing in the address. "Now what?"

"Triple click where it says 'hairstyles'."

Abby did as she was told. A few seconds later a much darker site pulled up. You could click on either 'pleasure' or 'pain'. "Whoa," She said as she looked at it, "Now what?"

"Go to pain and click on the first link."

Gibbs took a deep breath, "Tobias, you better not be wasting our time," He said, although he sort of wished this was a waste of time. He didn't want to think about what else it could be.

"I'm not."

Again, Abby did as Fornell directed. A couple of seconds after clicking on the first link, a video popped up. Abby immediately gasped, placing her hand over her mouth, "Oh my God!"

"You see it?"

It took a moment before Gibbs found his voice, "We see it. Thanks." Gibbs hung up, then called for Tony and Ziva to get down to the lab.

* * *

><p>"What is it, B-" Tony stopped mid-word as he saw what was on the screen, "That's not… That can't be..."<p>

Ziva cursed in Hebrew, anger quickly filling inside of her.

There was a man behind Tim, walking back and forth. They couldn't see his face because of the mask he had on.

"What's he doing?" Tony asked.

"He hasn't done anything yet," Gibbs replied.

"He hasn't done anything?" Abby questioned, tears filled in her eyes, "Have you not looked at Tim!"

"I mean on the video, Abby."

Just then, David took out a knife and cut the front of Tim's shirt right down the middle. He ripped it off as much as he could, revealing the purple and blue bruises on his stomach.

Ziva cursed again, Tony's curled his hands into a fist so tight that his knuckles were white, Gibbs could have punched a hole through the wall, and tears fell from Abby's eyes.

There was no sound with the video, but they could see David talking to Tim and, after a moment, a tear fell from Tim's good eye.

David then turned away from the camera and punched Tim in the gut.

Abby immediately looked away. She didn't want to see anything else.

For a moment she thought about bolting out of the room, then she remembered something… something she knew she should have done the first second she saw the video.

She got on her computer and started a trace on the video.

"What are you doing, Abby?" Gibbs asked after a moment.

"Hold on."

Everyone was quiet, the three agents watching Tim as Abby continued her search.

"Yes!" Abby shouted suddenly.

"What?" Tony asked.

She wrote something down, then turned to them, "This guy's an idiot! He didn't even try to hide himself! I got his location!" She turned back and grabbed the piece of paper that she had written on, then handed it to Gibbs, "That's where he is, Gibbs."

Gibbs looked at the paper, then back at Tony and Ziva, "Let's go."

* * *

><p><strong>I tried to make this as un-confusing as possible, but I'm sorry if it was still confusing. <strong>

**Also, I know you're supposed to use "dragged" not "drug" (like I did in the first sentence), but I never say dragged (nor does anyone I know), so I use drug. It sounds better to me, even if it's wrong. Sorry if that annoys anyone.**

**Hope you liked the chapter :) Let me know.**


	13. Beg

As Abby was left alone, she looked back at the screen to see David talking to Tim again. She tried to depict as much as she could by reading his lips, but she could only get every few words. _"…when you… and we were… on the bed… you were so young… so innocent… I loved the way you felt… Wish… could have finished."_ Abby watched as David walked behind Tim and touched his shoulder, making Tim flinch. She could tell memories from when he was younger was flashing through his mind.

Half furious and half terrified, Abby knew she didn't need, or want, to be left alone in there. She was afraid that if she left, she would miss something that she needed to see. But she wanted someone with her. So she called down to autopsy…

* * *

><p>A couple of minutes later, Ducky arrived. "It sounded urgent, Abi-" Ducky froze as he stared at the screen, "Oh dear."<p>

Abby turned to him, a tear rolling down her face, "I couldn't watch it alone, Ducky. I just couldn't."

Ducky looked away from the screen and to Abby. He walked over to her and embraced her in a warm, comforting hug. "It's alright, Abigail, let it out."

Abby continued to cry as she rested her head on Ducky's shoulder. "How could anyone do this, Ducky? How could anyone hurt Tim? He's one of the best guys in the world… And that man… he keeps taunting him. He talks to him, then touches him, then he hurts him."

Ducky patted Abby's back. As he hugged her, he was facing the screen, having to watch what was going on, "He is strong, Abigail. We must remember that."

"I know, Ducky. I just… I don't like knowing he's hurting."

"Nor do I, Abigail. Nor do I."

* * *

><p>"Let's move along, Tim. I'm getting bored with all this punching, kicking, and <em>almost<em>-drowning you." David got up close to Tim's ear and whispered, "I'm ready for the next step, Tim. I never got to finish with you, but now I can. Now I don't have a woman telling me to take it slow. I can do whatever I want with you. And I. want. you." David began to unbuckle his belt, "All of you."

Tim's heart was racing. He wanted to run out of that room. He could just imagine himself running out of there, getting free, forgetting about all of this ever happening. That's what he wanted more than anything.

But, even if his ankle wasn't chained, or if he wasn't tied to the chair, he would have barely been able to _crawl_ out of that building.

David took his belt off and threw it down, then he began to untie Tim.

"D… Don't," Tim begged.

"Oh, I love it when you beg."

Another tear fell from Tim's eyes, "Why a… are you… doing this?"

"I told you already." David lifted Tim under his arms and laid him on the ground. He ripped Tim's shirt off the rest of the way. "You know, I knew I'd enjoy this moment, but I didn't think I'd be _this_ excited." David smiled at Tim as he knelt down, straddling him. "This is gonna be fun, Tim."

Tim tried to fight back as David began unbuttoning his pants, but he was so weak that it wasn't even a nuisance to David.

David pulled down Tim's pants, leaving him only in his boxers.

"Please… Please, don't… Please…"

David laughed, "That's it. Just keep begging."

* * *

><p>"Ducky! Why aren't they there yet?"<p>

"They'll be there soon, Abigail."

"It's not soon enough! He's gonna rape Tim! Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, oh my-"

"Abigail!" Ducky exclaimed, "You must remember to remain calm."

Abby nodded and took a deep breath, "Okay, okay. I'm calm, I'm calm…" She paused as David turned Tim over onto his stomach, "I'm not calm."

* * *

><p>Devon was out taking a walk in the woods when he heard something. He turned back and, through the trees, he saw a car turn down the dirt road. Knowing his "dad" wouldn't be inviting anyone to the storage lockers, Devon began running as fast as he could to get to David before the people in the car did.<p>

* * *

><p>Devon burst through the door just before David started to take off his own clothes.<p>

"Evan, what the-"

"Dad, someone's coming."

"What?"

"I saw a car coming this way."

David hurried to his feet, "Go out the back! Run!"

* * *

><p>Gibbs pulled up to the building and quickly got out of the car, "Ziva, you go around back. Tony and I will take the front."<p>

Ziva nodded and headed out back while Tony and Gibbs made their way to the front entrance.

"In position?" Gibbs asked Ziva after a moment.

"Yes, I am ready."

"On three. One. Two. Three!"

They entered into the building, guns drawn, ready to fire when necessary.

There were two directions in which Tony and Gibbs could go. "You go right, I'll go left," Gibbs whispered.

Tony nodded and the two split up, going their separate ways.

One by one, Gibbs opened each storage space.

Empty.

Empty.

Empty.

Empty.

Gibbs froze for a moment after he opened the fifth door.

"Tim."

* * *

><p><strong>I know it's short, but if I didn't end it here, I wouldn't be able to post this chapter until tomorrow or the day after. Plus, for some reason, this chapter was really difficult to write. Maybe cause it contained so many people in so many different places... I don't know. Anyway, hope you guys liked the chapter :)<strong>


	14. Down The Road

Gibbs hurried over to Tim and knelt down beside him.

"Tim," Gibbs said as he laid a hand on Tim's shoulder.

Tim, still lying on his stomach, jerked away from Gibbs as much as he could. "No," He whispered, his breathing fast and heavy.

Gibbs immediately removed his hand, "Tim, it's me. It's Gibbs." He got up and moved over to the other side of Tim, so he could see him.

When he got to the other side he saw that Tim's eyes were shut tight and he was crying. "McGee, open your eyes."

"No, no, no," Tim continued to whisper.

"McGee!" Gibbs said again, but more demanding this time, "Open your eyes." He needed to get Tim out of this trance he seemed to be in right now.

Tim slowly opened his good eye and another tear fell down his face. "B… Boss?"

Gibbs nodded, "It's me, Tim. I'm here."

"You… You found m- me."

"Yeah we did. You're gonna be okay, you hear me?"

"I don't… I don't want the others to… to see me like this."

"I'm gonna turn you over and help you pull your pants back up, okay?"

Tim nodded, "Okay."

Gibbs slowly turned Tim back over, trying to cause him as little pain as possible.

Tim clenched his jaw, holding in the screams that threatened to come out. He didn't even really notice Gibbs pulling up or buttoning his pants. He was feeling too many emotions. He didn't know what to think. He was scared, happy, embarrassed, sad, humiliated, and nervous. The fact that the team had actually found him… it was almost too much to take in.

* * *

><p>When Abby watched Gibbs enter that room, she couldn't help but jump up and down, while clapping her hands, then run over to Ducky and give him a big hug.<p>

Ducky was also happy, but he knew that this wasn't the end of the road for Tim. If anything, it was the beginning of an even longer road.

* * *

><p>After Gibbs finished fixing Tim's pants, he got up and went to the video camera. He wasn't sure how to turn it off, so he took it off the tripod, laid it on the ground, and smashed it with his foot. "That should do it," He said to himself before going back over to Tim.<p>

"McGee, you need to tell me what hurts." He knew it sounded like a pretty dumb question, especially seeing all the bruises all over his body, but he still needed to know.

"Everything," Tim replied.

"What's the worst?"

Tim paused. "Ribs."

Just then, both Tony and Ziva came into the room.

"We did not fi-" Ziva stopped mid-word at the sight of Tim. She whispered something in Hebrew, then started to go up to him.

"Ziva, go call for an ambulance," Gibbs said, knowing Tim wouldn't want a bunch of people in the room.

Ziva nodded and left out. Tony stood motionless in the doorway. Sure, he had seen the video. He had seen the bruises on Tim… But not like this. It was definitely a lot different in person.

"Boss," Tony began, finding his voice, "What do you need me to do?"

"Help me carry Tim to the car. The ambulance won't be able to make it down that dirt road. We need to take him out to the main road and wait there."

Tony nodded and slowly walked over to Tim, who had shut his eyes again. "Um… Boss, I… I don't wanna hurt him," He said quietly, but not quietly enough for Tim not to hear.

"It's okay," Tim replied, "I c-can walk."

Tony quickly looked down at him, "I- I thought you were out, Tim."

Tim shook his head slowly, "Unfor-tunately, no."

Gibbs sighed, "Tim, you can't walk."

"I can!" Tim replied more loudly. "I don't w- want to be c- carried. Just h- help me w- walk."

Tony looked at Gibbs to see what they would do, and Gibbs nodded.

Slowly and painfully, for Tim anyway, they helped him to his feet.

He made a low groaning noise with every step, but he made it to the car. They all got inside, letting Tim lie down in the back, and drove down the road to meet the ambulance.

* * *

><p>Gibbs was walking back to the waiting room with his second cup of coffee when Abby rushed in.<p>

"Gibbs, Gibbs!" She yelled to get his attention.

He looked over then walked up to her, "We don't know anything yet, Abbs."

She wrapped her arms around him, "I was so glad when I saw you in that room. I didn't think you'd get there fast enough and I thought that man would… I thought he'd…" She couldn't finish. It was too depressing to think about.

"I know, Abbs, I know."

They let go of one another and headed towards Tony and Ziva, who were sitting beside each other. Tony was biting his nails and Ziva was filing hers… with her knife.

"Gibbs?"

"Yeah?"

"I think someone was there with them."

"What?"

"I never saw anyone else, but the guy just stopped and looked back, then he said something. I don't think he was talking to Tim. I think someone told him you guys were coming."

Gibbs knew he'd need to check into this _very_ soon, but right now, all he cared about was making sure Tim was okay.

They were both silent for a moment.

"Where's Ducky?" Gibbs asked.

"Parking the car. He let me out first cause I couldn't wait any longer. He said he was afraid I'd jump out while the car was still moving. Is he gonna be okay, Gibbs?"

"He'll live, Abby."

"But is he gonna be okay?"

Gibbs sighed, "The doctor hasn't come back yet. Tim hasn't been back there long."

"Gibbs."

He knew that she was desperate for a straight answer, and that he couldn't give her one. He walked her over to a chair and sat her down, then he sat beside her. "The physical abuse will heal, but I can't say how his mind will be. Not yet anyway."

Abby took a deep breath. Part of her wanted to cry, and the other part wanted to stay strong for Tim. She knew he couldn't see her right now, and would probably never know if she cried or not, but she still felt the need to stay strong. "He'll be okay," She told herself. "...He has to be."

* * *

><p><strong>I wanted to end this a bit differently cause I seem to always end hospital chapters the same way; with the doctor coming out and telling the news. I'm getting kind of tired of that way, hence the change :)<strong>

**Hope you guys liked the chapter :)**


	15. Silence

He laid in his hospital room, all alone. The only noise was from the beeping of the monitors he was attached to. The doctor had told him what each one was for, but he didn't really listen. He didn't really care. They said they would come back in a moment and turn the sound off, but he didn't mind it. He kind of liked the noise. It was soothing in a weird way.

He had just been moved to his room. A room he would be in for a few days. He knew the doctor was probably out in the waiting room right now, telling the whole team about how he was doing.

His worst injury was his ribs. Two were broken, four were bruised. They were all wrapped up now, but, if so many different medications weren't running through his system, he'd be in a lot of pain.

He was tired. Very, very tired. But he didn't want to close his eyes. Every time they would close, he would see David. He would hear David. He would _feel_ David. He didn't want that.

So, for now, he just stared straight ahead. He had fixed his bed so he wasn't lying flat. That way had only made him more sleepy.

The swelling was still bad around his eyes, especially the one eye. He could open it a little more, but just barely.

Both of his arms were bandaged, hiding the burn marks from where the cigarette made contact with his skin over and over. His wrists were also bandaged- as being handcuffed overnight with all the weight mainly on your wrists… well, it didn't look pretty. He hadn't even realized how raw they were until the doctor began to bandage them.

He had a few stitches on his lip from where he was punched, and a cannula to help with his breathing.

He knew the team would be coming in soon. Probably Gibbs first, then Ducky- even though Abby would be begging to come in. Abby would get to come after Ducky, then Tony, and lastly, Ziva. She would be last because she would want to try and get her emotions in check before coming in.

He didn't want to talk. He didn't feel like it. He didn't feel like doing anything.

He glanced over at the door as it began to open. A nurse came in, smiled at him, walked over to the monitors, and silenced the beeping. The she left, never saying a word.

Before the door closed all the way back, it opened again. This time, Gibbs walked in.

_'Called that one,'_ He thought.

He stared straight ahead as Gibbs walked over and sat down. "Hey, Tim."

Tim knew he should respond. He had the response of "Hi" in his head, but… he just couldn't make himself speak.

Gibbs leaned forward, placing his elbows on his legs and folding his hands together. "I'm sorry, Tim… I should have never left you at my house by yourself. I should have done a full check of the place, then waited there until another agent could have come and stayed with you. I thought you'd be safe there… I'm sorry."

Tim continued staring straight ahead. He didn't blame Gibbs for anything, and he would have told him that… but he didn't.

Gibbs took a deep breath. He stood up and walked to the hospital bed. He didn't touch Tim, remembering how Tim jerked away the last time. "Will you look at me, McGee? Just so I know you hear me."

Tim didn't move his head, but slowly- very slowly- he moved his eyes over and stared at Gibbs.

Gibbs nodded. "We'll find him, Tim. I promise."

Tim moved his eyes back, but nodded. Gibbs knew it was only one nod, but it was something.

"I'll be back later, Tim." Gibbs turned and left out of the room.

Tim only had a few seconds alone before Ducky came in.

"Hello, Timothy," Ducky greeted him in the most cheerful voice he could fake. Gibbs had already told him, and the rest of the team, that he wouldn't speak to him, so Ducky was prepared. "I am very happy to see you. We were all deeply concerned. However, I had no doubt that you would be found…" His voice trailed off. It didn't seem like Tim was even there. It was more like an empty shell. Just a fake, robot version of Tim.

"I spoke with your doctor," Ducky continued. "He is a very nice man, and I am positive that he will treat you well. But, Timothy, if you need anything, you just call me, alright? I will be here as quickly as I am needed."

Again, Tim responded by a single nod.

Ducky sighed inwardly. "Yes, well, I better go. Abigail is begging to come in and see you. I do not want to make her wait any further… Goodbye for now, Timothy."

And once again, for less then a minute, Tim was alone.

_'Two down, three to go.'_

The cracked door slowly opened and Abby peaked her head inside. If it wasn't for Tim's peripheral vision, he never would have seen her. She looked at Tim for a moment before coming in. Her hesitation confused him. He'd never known her to hesitate before. Not with seeing a teammate after something had happened to them. The only thing he could come up with is that Gibbs and Ducky had told her about him being a mute, of sorts.

Abby walked up to him, then gently placed her hand on top of his. Something he hated right now was being touched… but with her, he didn't mind.

She didn't speak. She didn't wrap her arms around him, giving him one of her big Abby-hugs. She was just… there. It was so unAbby-like, but it was what he needed. She seemed to know that he didn't want to say anything. And she seemed to know that he didn't really care about what others had to say right now either.

How she understood this? Tim wasn't sure. But that didn't matter.

Without moving her hand from his, she reached back and pulled the chair closer then sat down.

She gently rubbed her thumb over his hand for a couple of minutes as they sat in silence, then she got up.

She moved her hand off of Tim's and turned to move the chair back to its original spot.

"Thank you," Tim said softly.

Abby turned back towards him, looking as though she was in disbelief.

Tim was looking over at her. She could see the tears in his eyes, but he wasn't crying.

Abby smiled warmly, "You're welcome, Timmy. I'll see you later."

"Okay."

Abby left then Tony came in, just like Tim had figured it would go.

"Hey, McGoo," Tony said with a smile, although he was really unbelievably angry and sad over how Tim looked and how he had been treated. "Just wanted to see how you were doin'… I've been waiting in that waiting room for forever. The chairs are freakishly uncomfortable." Tony began to stretch his back, "I think I pulled a muscle somehow...

"Anyway," Tony continued, becoming more serious, "I know you're not really in the mood for company right now, and I can't say that I blame you but…" Tony moved up to Tim's bedside, "It's really good to see you, man. Not gonna lie; I was pretty scared."

Tim took a deep breath. He had never heard Tony be so honest before. It was different… Weird… but in a good way.

"Okay, well, I gotta head out. Ziva's coming in next, as you probably already know, then you'll finally reach the end of the visitors train. Later, McBro."

Tony took a deep breath as he left out of the room. It was just so hard to see Tim like that. So… lifeless.

Ziva walked in and went straight to the chair. She sat down quickly, looking around the room to avoid staring at Tim's many injuries.

"We have not found the man that kidnapped you. Not yet anyway. But we will. We will find him soon, and when we do, I will-" She cut herself off quickly, knowing that this was not a good was to start a one-sided conversation. She cleared her throat. "That does not matter. What does matter is that you are alright. You are safe now. That man will never touch you again. None of us will allow it. Gibbs is already back at NCIS, working on the case. Tony and I will be going there soon… but that does not matter either.

"I knew you would be alright from the beginning. You are a strong man. I never had any doubt that-" She stopped as Tim's hand raised slightly off the bed. He turned it over and opened it for her her to take.

At first she didn't know what to do, then she got up. She walked over to the bed and slowly put her hand in his. Tears filled in her eyes and she let a few fall. "I am sorry, Tim. I do not like to see any of you hurting; and that man… what he… It is not right."

Tim squeezed Ziva's hand lightly, just so she knew he heard her. It's not that he was in the mood to hold hands with anyone right now, but he knew she was scared. He could sense it in her voice. He knew all too well right now what it was like to be scared, and he didn't want her to feel that way.

After a moment, Ziva wiped the tears from her eyes. "I better go, Tim. Tony and I need to return to NCIS. I will see you soon though." She patted his hand, then left.

...Now, Tim was all by himself. It was what he had wanted at first but, now that he had been with all of his team members, he just felt… alone.

Even though he didn't like that feeling, it was still somehow a relief.

He lifted his hands up to his face and, unable to hold it in any longer, he cried.

* * *

><p><strong>This was a little different for me to write. I don't know what it was, but it was just... different. I loved writing the chapter though. It came a lot easier than most hospital ones usually do for me.<strong>

**Well, I hope you guys enjoyed it :) Thanks for all the previous reviews! And, if you review this chapter, I will give you a big Abby-sized hug! ;)**

**Oh, and the McGee parents should be in the next chapter. Just an fyi :)**


	16. Army Men

The next day, Tim's parents made it to DC. They slowly walked into Tim's hospital room. It was dark inside, besides a dim light shining over Tim's head. He was lying down flat, with his head turned opposite the door.

Tim's mom, Mary walked over to the other side of Tim to see if he was awake. Seeing his eyes closed, she whispered, "He's sleeping."

"He's probably exhausted… Can't blame him," Mike replied, standing by the other side of Tim's bed.

Mary sighed and shook her head, "I just can't believe this happened _again_," She said, tears in her eyes.

"Mary, he'll be okay."

"Do you not remember last time, Mike? He wasn't the same for years!... No, he was _never_ the same… He got better, but he was never the same."

"He's older now. He's stronger. He's not ten anymore."

"I don't care how old he is," Mary replied, still whispering, "That man traumatized him before, and… and we don't even know what he's been through this time…" She covered her mouth and her voice trailed off as she began to cry.

Mike walked around the bed and over to Mary. He wrapped his arms around her, comforting her. "It's okay, honey. It's gonna be okay."

"I just… I don't want to see him like that again. I don't want to see him so scared, so… so withdrawn."

"I know. It'll be okay."

They were both silent for a moment as Mike continued to console Mary.

"Why don't we go down to the cafeteria?" Mike suggested. "It's been a long trip and you haven't eaten in a long time. We'll come back later to see Tim once he's awake."

Mary was hesitant, but she agreed. They both quietly left out of the room to let Tim sleep.

The second the door closed, Tim opened his eyes. He pressed the button on the remote to move his bed, putting him in a sitting position.

He winced in pain as he sat up, his ribs hurting him a little.

Listening to his parents talk like that… saying how he was withdrawn before… he didn't want that. He hated how sorry they seemed to feel for him. He hated that that was probably how the team felt the day before. He didn't want to be thought of as a victim. Not again. He was a victim when he was ten- now he's a federal agent. Federal agents aren't victims… Ever. At least not to him. Not right now.

He looked at the clock on the hospital wall. It was just a little past nine in the morning. He had slept about three hours during the night when the pain medication took over and forced him into a restless sleep.

He slowly- very, very slowly- moved his legs around so they were hanging off the side of the bed. He undid his IV and took off all the stickers that had been placed on his chest to monitor his heart rate and such.

He took a deep, painful breath as he stood up and walked to the door- placing a hand over his stomach to try and ease the pain.

* * *

><p>"We will continue looking, Gibbs, but there is no sign of him. The dogs were out for a while, but the trail went icy."<p>

"_Cold_," Tony corrected, "The trail went cold."

"Then we find him another way!" Gibbs exclaimed. "I don't care what we have to do, we're going to catch this guy!"

"Yes, Gibbs."

"Understood, Boss."

All three agents walked away from the plasma, which had a photo taken at the hospital of the bruises from Tim's back on it, and they went to their desks.

"Oh, Boss," Tony continued, "I ca… Oh my God."

Both Gibbs and Ziva looked up at Tony, then over in the direction he was staring at. There was Tim, slowly walking towards them from the elevator.

"Oh my God," Ziva echoed.

Gibbs stood up as Tim reached the bullpen. He cursed, "What are you doin' here, McGee?"

"I need to tell you what happened."

"Are you not supposed to be at the hospital?" Ziva questioned.

"I checked myself out."

"Why'd you do that?" Tony asked. "You look like crap!"

"I'm fine."

Gibbs sighed, "You're anything but fine, McGee. You look like you're about to fall over. DiNozzo, pull over his chair."

"I can walk to my desk."

"You're not walking anywhere, McGee! Don't argue with me."

Tony pulled Tim's desk chair beside him and Tim, reluctantly, sat down.

"I'm taking you back to the hospital," Gibbs said, turning to go back to his desk. "How'd you even get here? Where's your security detail?"

"They drove me here. They didn't want to, but I made them."

Gibbs picked up his keys, "Let's go."

"No!" Tim yelled, sick of being treated like a kid.

"McGee, you shouldn't be here. You're hurt. Can you honestly tell me you're not in any pain?"

"I just want to give my statement! Can you let me do that?"

"You can do it once you start to feel bet-"

"Devon's still alive!" Tim interrupted, knowing that would shut Gibbs up.

The room went silent. Tony and Ziva looked at each other in shock, and Gibbs stared at Tim.

"What did you say?" Gibbs asked after a moment.

"Devon. He's still alive. He's with David."

"David?"

"That's the name of the guy who took me."

"Look, Tim, you should re-"

Tim stood up, hiding the pain that shot through his ribcage as he did so. "Do not tell me to go back to the hospital. I'm here and I'm staying here, that's that."

Gibbs took a deep breath. "Fine. But the second you start feelin' any worse."

"I know, I know. Back to the hospital I go."

Gibbs nodded once. "Alright. Let's all go to the conference room."

* * *

><p>"Start at the beginning," Gibbs said as they all sat down.<p>

Tim took a deep breath. "I went in your guest bedroom to lay down. Everything was fine. I closed my eyes and started to fall asleep… then I heard something. I thought you had come back to tell me something but, when I opened my eyes, he- David- was standing over me, just staring at me. I- I didn't even move. I thought I was having a nightmare, but… even once I realized it wasn't a nightmare… I- I didn't try to get away. Not really. I barely even fought back! I mean, I did a little bit, but I knew that I wouldn't get away. I practically just let him take me! But I was so shocked, so c- confused that- that I couldn't think straight! God, I was so stupid!"

"McGee, you can take a break if you want," Gibbs said, noticing the look on Tim's face. He wasn't sure if Tim was about to pass out from being in pain, or if he was gonna start screaming his head off in anger at himself.

"No!" Tim replied quickly, "No, I need to finish."

Tim went through every detail of his time with David. There were moments when Ziva was so angry that, in her head, she would start going over the ways she would put David through torture- slowly killing him while he begged for mercy.

Just looking at Tim's injured body was enough for Tony to want to rip the man apart. Hearing the story of how the bruises came to be was just the icing on the cake.

Gibbs face remained emotionless, but on the inside he was fuming. His team members were his family… and you don't hurt his family.

The only sign of nervousness from Tim was his uncontrollable stutter. Otherwise, he also remained emotionless… which worried Gibbs, a lot. Especially when Tim started talking about David removing his clothes to try and rape him. He never batted and eye, nor did tears come to his eyes. There was… nothing.

* * *

><p><em>"Got an eight?"<em>

_"Go fish."_

_"...I got an eight! I win!"_

_"Ugh! I'm sick of this game."_

_"You're just sick of it because you're losing, Tim."_

_"No duh. Who likes losing?" Tim got up and walked to his closet. He got out his box of army men and walked back over to Devon. "Here you go."_

_"You're really gonna give 'em to me?" Devon asked._

_"A bet's a bet… I just knew I'd win."_

_Devon opened the box and looked at the army men, then closed it and handed it back to Tim. "Keep them. I don't need 'em."_

_"But we made a bet."_

_"So what? I only play with them when I'm with you anyway, so I still get to use them."_

_Tim smiled. "Thanks, Devon."_

_"Secret handshake?"_

_"Yeah!"_

_The two boys laughed and did their secret handshake, then they began playing with the army men._

"Evan! Evan, wake up!"

Devon's eyes popped open. His heart was racing. He knew immediately that that was more than just a dream. It was a memory. His name wasn't Evan. Tim was his friend… How could he have let this happen?

"What?" He asked.

"We gotta go over the plans again. Do you remember them?"

Devon rubbed his eyes. "Yeah. I remember… I need to go to the bathroom. Can we stop?"

David sighed. "Fine, but make it quick."

He pulled off of the road and into a gas station. "I'm stayin' out here. Hurry up."

"I will."

Devon went inside, then looked back to make sure he was out of David's sight. He went up to the cashier. "You got a phone?"

"Yeah, round back. It's a payphone."

David nodded and headed to the back of the store. He reached in his pocket and pulled out two quarters. He put the quarters into the payphone and pressed the button for the operator.

"How may I help you today?"

"I need NCIS Headquarters."

"One moment please… Patching you through."

David's heart was racing. He was becoming more and more nervous with each passing second.

"NCIS Headquarters, how may I help you?"

"I need to speak to a Special Agent Timothy McGee, please. It's important… It's a matter of life and death."

* * *

><p><strong>*singing* Never, ever thought I'd get this freakin' chapter finished *end singing*<strong>

**I'm working on all three stories at once right now... I don't know why, but my mind can't seem to focus on one. I have ideas going for all three and I had to let them out at the same time. It's ridonkulous. **

**Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter :) Lettith meeith knowith.**


	17. Trust

The team walked out of the conference room and headed back to the bullpen. Tim walked pretty far behind the others, going slowly as he held a hand around his stomach area.

Tony and Ziva both looked back occasionally, then glanced at each other, both noting the looks of pain on his face.

"Go back to the hospital, McGee," Gibbs said.

"I don't need to."

Gibbs turned to Tim, "I'm not blind, McGee. You're about to pass out from the pain in your ribs, you can barely see out of your one eye, you've got bruises covering most of your body… You need to be at the hospital."

Tim went to reply when his desk phone rang. He walked past Gibbs and made his way to his desk. "Hello-"

_ "Tim?"_

"Who's this?"

_"Ev- Devon."_

Tim paused. He couldn't even think of anything to say.

_"Are you there?"_

"Y- Yeah, I'm here. W- Why are you calling?"

_"Your sister's in danger."_

"What?"

_"David's on his way to take your sister… He's gonna kill her. He said that since he can't get to you, he'll get the next best thing."_

Tim rubbed his forehead, "Oh my God. Where are you?"

_"We've been driving around for a long time while he's been making plans. We're about two hours away from your sister's place."_

"What's he gonna do, Devon?"

_"I- I gotta go. He'll know something's wrong. I told him I needed to go to the bathroom."_

"Wait! Devon, wa-"

It was too late. Devon had already hung up.

"We gotta go," Tim said, not bothering to hang up his phone, and ignoring his injuries, as he rushed towards the elevator. He looked back to see the team_ not_ following him, but simply staring at him in confusion. "Get your gear and let's go!" He exclaimed, "I'll explain on the way."

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you can trust this guy, McGee?" Tony asked as they got closer to Sarah's apartment. He and Tim were sitting in the back together. Tim had wanted to drive, but Gibbs wouldn't allow it.<p>

"His name is Devon, Tony, not "this guy.""

"Okay, sorry. Are you sure you can trust Devon? I mean, you just told us how he beat you up."

Tim shook his head. "No. This is different."

"He could be playing you, Tim. It seems like a pretty quick change to-"

"Tony! Shut up! I know Devon. I. know. him. He's telling the truth. I can feel it in my gut."

"You sure it's not just the broken ribs?"

Tim gave Tony a glare that could put Gibbs' to shame. "If you don't trust my judgment, Tony, then you can just go back to NCIS. And if that's how you all feel, then you can all go back. I can handle this by myself."

"You do not even have your weapon, Tim," Ziva reminded him. "And I have full trust in you."

"So do I," Gibbs agreed.

Tony took a deep breath and looked out the window. "...Me too."

"What are we gonna do?" Tim asked, wanting to know the plan.

"_You_ aren't going to do anything," Gibbs replied, "Except go with Sarah to the safehouse that the officers will take you to."

"What? You can't be serious."

"I can be, and I am. Like it or not, you're injured, Tim, and you don't have a weapon. You don't need to be here. You need to go with your sister."

"I can help."

"This isn't open for debate. You're going with Sarah. End of story."

* * *

><p>"How long do we have to stay here?" Sarah asked as she and Tim entered the safehouse.<p>

"Until Gibbs calls."

"When will he call?"

"I don't know, Sarah," Tim replied, quickly becoming annoyed.

"You don't have to get mad at me, Tim."

Tim let out a deep breath and sat down on the couch. "I know. I'm… I'm sorry, I just… I don't know."

Sarah sat down beside him. "It's okay… Are you okay, Tim? You really don't look good."

"I really don't feel good," He admitted.

"Should I have the officers come in? They can take you to the hospital."

"No. No, I don't need the hospital. I just need this to be over."

"Do you think it'll ever be over, Tim?"

Tim sighed. "I don't know, Sarah… but I hope so."

Sarah looked over Tim. She hated how bad he looked. It scared her just thinking about what he went through. She went to ask him if he wanted her to get him anything, then she remembered something. "Did you talk to Mom and Dad when they came to visit you today?"

Tim's eyes widened. "Oh my God. Oh my God, I forgot about them."

"Tim, they're probably worried sick."

Tim pulled his cellphone out of his pocket. He looked on it and found ten new voicemails and twelve text messages. "I had it on silent. Crap." He handed the phone to Sarah. "Will you call them and tell them I'm okay. I need to go to the bathroom and get a wet rag for my face. I'm feelin' kinda hot."

Sarah nodded. "Okay. If you need anything, let me know."

"I will."

Tim got up and headed to the bathroom as Sarah called their parents.

* * *

><p>She hung up after filling them in on what was going on… They wanted to come to the safehouse immediately, but she told them no. They were better off going to their hotel and staying until she or Tim called them back.<p>

After waiting a few minutes, Sarah began to worry about Tim. She got up and headed down the hallway towards the bathroom. "Tim? Tim, are you okay?"

She reached the bathroom and slowly pushed the door open. The window had been opened, and there was no sign of Tim.

"Oh my God," Sarah said, realizing what he had done. She went to call him, then remembered she had his phone in her hand.

Tim was badly hurt and on his way to possibly be hurt even worse… and there was no way to stop it.

* * *

><p><strong>Random note: As I'm reading over this, I'm eating tater tots. Yummy!<strong>

**Yup, I think that's it. Thanks for reading and reviewing!**


	18. Shots Ring Out

Tim had no idea what he was doing. He had no plan. That wasn't like him. He_ always_ had a plan… He wasn't even sure what made him open that window and leave. He wasn't going to. He was just going to get a wet rag, cool himself down and try to keep from passing out.

Maybe he _did_ need to go back to the hospital. He wasn't sure. All he knew is that he needed to turn around and go back to the safehouse. There was no reason for him to go to Sarah's place and wait for David and Devon to get there, no reason at all. But, he couldn't turn around. He kept telling himself that he should, but he just couldn't.

Tim looked at his watch. He figured that, with how slow he was walking, he would get to Sarah's place at around the same time the David would pull up. Perfect timing… or horrible timing, depending on how you looked at it.

* * *

><p>Sarah searched through Tim's contacts until she got to Gibbs. She quickly pressed the call button and waited for him to answer.<p>

"Hel-"

_"Agent Gibbs! Tim's gone!"_

"What?"

_"He left out the bathroom window! I don't know what to do!"_

"Don't do anything Sarah. He's most likely coming here. We'll be waiting for him."

_"What if he doesn't make it? He looked horrible, Agent Gibbs. I thought he was gonna pass out here."_

Gibbs took a deep breath. "Don't worry, Sarah. It'll be okay." Even as he said it, he wasn't sure himself.

_"Just… Just call me as soon as you see him, okay?"_

"I will." Gibbs hung up and sighed.

"What is it, Boss?" Tony asked as he walked up the hallway from the bathroom.

"Tim's heading here."

"What!"

"Tim is on his way here."

"Well, we have to stop him!"

"And how do we do that, DiNozzo? Sarah just called from Tim's phone and we don't know which way he's walking to get here."

"So we put officers out on every route to here."

"Tony, the idea is for this guy to _not_ know we're here. If he sees officers lining the streets I think that'll tip him off."

Tony sighed. "How could he be so stupid? Why the heck would he come here?"

"Because he's been waiting for this moment for twenty-three years. Don't pretend you wouldn't have done the same thing."

"…It's still stupid," He mumbled as he walked away to wait in the living room.

Ziva had been keeping watch outside. She was hidden in the back, but still able to see around front. Gibbs radioed her and told her about Tim, so now she was keeping a lookout for him as well.

* * *

><p>Two hours passed by and neither David and Devon, or Tim were at the house.<p>

"I knew Tim shouldn't have listened to Devon," Tony said as he and Gibbs went into the kitchen for a drink.

"It's only twenty minutes past the time they should have been here, DiNozzo."

"Still… And where _is_ McGee? He should have been here by now too."

"This is our first priority, Tony."

"How?" Tony replied in anger. "How is this our first priority when McIdiot is out there, probably lying on the ground, dying!"

"We don't know that, DiNozzo, and you need to calm down. We have the chance to catch a man who destroyed the lives of two children- possibly even more. I'm not giving up on that chance. You wanna leave, you leave. Go down each and every route to here, including back areas that aren't on maps anywhere, and you try and find McGee. Otherwise, shut up, calm down, and wait."

Gibbs left out of the room and Tony angrily gritted his teeth together, but he didn't say a word.

* * *

><p>David pulled over to the side of the road when they were about a block away from the house. "Something's wrong," He said.<p>

"What are you talkin' about?" Devon asked.

"You. You've been too quiet. Ever since I let you go to the bathroom at that gas station. What'd you do?"

"I didn't do anything."

David angrily grabbed Devon by the hair. "You're lying to me!"

"No, I'm not! Stop it!" Devon tried to push David's hand off of him, but he wasn't as strong as David, so he couldn't.

"Yes you are! What did you do?"

Devon still wouldn't answer, but David seemed to figure it out for himself. "You called them, didn't you?.. Didn't you!"

"No!" Devon yelled.

David didn't buy it. He knew when Devon was lying to him… and Devon could tell, by the look on David's face, that something very bad was about to happen.

David let go of Devon, just so he could grab his gun. Devon took this as his one chance to get away. He quickly turned and opened the passenger door. He shot out of the car and began running as fast as he could.

David cursed as he also hurried out of the car and began chasing after Devon.

Tim turned a corner right by Sarah's house to see Devon and David running in his direction.

He froze when he saw the gun in David's hand, pointed right at Devon. He began to scream, "Devon! Move!" He yelled as he ran towards them, motioning for Devon to turn towards the house.

But Devon wasn't fast enough. As Gibbs and Tony ran outside, and Ziva ran from the back, a shot rang out. Devon fell to the ground.

"No, no, no," Tim repeated as he continued running towards him.

"Tim, stop!" Gibbs yelled.

Tim froze then looked up and saw David pointing the gun right at him. He looked over to see Tony's, Gibbs' and Ziva's guns all pointed at David.

"You're not gonna win this," Gibbs told David. "Just put down the gun."

"I just want Tim!" He demanded. "I never got to finish. I _need_ to finish!"

"That's not gonna happen."

"I'm not gonna put the gun down!"

"Then we'll shoot you!" Tony replied, "I can assure you that I don't have a problem doing that."

"Gibbs," Ziva whispered as she looked over at Devon, "Devon is bleeding badly. He needs an ambulance."

"Keep your gun drawn and call for one," He replied. "I don't intend on this lasting very long."

Ziva nodded and took out her phone to make the call.

"I've waited twenty-three years for this!" David yelled, staring straight at Tim, "I'm not giving up now! You can't sto-"

Without waiting for him to finish, Tony fired his weapon. He shot David in the arm, making him immediately drop the gun.

Tony ran over and began to cuff him as Tim ran to Devon.

"Hey, hey," He said to get Devon's attention. He took a hold of his face so Devon would be looking at him. "You're gonna be okay, you hear me?"

"He… can't… hurt anyone… anymore?" Devon asked with tears in his eyes.

"No. No, he can't hurt anyone anymore."

Devon smiled faintly. "G- Good." His eyes slowly began to close.

"No! No, Devon, you have to stay awake!"

His eyes opened back up. "Tell… my mom and dad… I love them… and I… never really… forgot them... It got... blurry for... a while, but... I never... forgot."

"They never forgot you either, Devon. I still go visit them and I call them and they always talk about you… But you can tell them you love them yourself, okay?"

"I can't… keep my… eyes open."

As Devon's eyes closed back Tim looked up frantically. "Where's the ambulance!" He yelled.

"They're coming," Gibbs assured him.

Tim stood up, but as he did, the pain he had been ignoring could no longer be ignored. Ziva was barely able to catch him as he fell backwards and everything went black.

* * *

><p><strong>This week has been so busy! BLERG! <strong>

**But, besides that, I have also been on an Arrested Development high lately. I've seen the whole series like 6 times already, but I can just never get enough of it.**

**Well, hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!**


	19. Would Have Been

The next thing Tim heard was the sound of machines beeping. A sound which most would find annoying he, once again, found soothing.

He slowly opened his eyes. At first, everything was blurry, but after blinking a few times, things became clearer.

"Hey, Tim," Gibbs said quietly.

Tim looked over to his side to see Gibbs standing there, staring down at him.

"Hi," He replied, his voice raspy and very, very dry.

Gibbs pressed a button on the side of Tim's bed to put him in a sitting position. He took a cup off of the tray that stood beside the bed, then handed it to Tim. "It's ice chips. Only take one."

Tim nodded slowly. He took out a piece of ice and put it in his mouth, then handed the cup back to Gibbs.

"How long… have I been… out?" Tim asked.

"Two days," Gibbs replied.

Tim's eyes widened. "What?" He said loudly, then began to cough because of it.

"You were exhausted, and very sick. You should never have left the hospital in the first place. You were also dehydrated so that didn't help matters any. You messed up your ribs so it's gonna take them longer to heal. You-"

"Screwed up," Tim said for him.

"Basically, yeah."

Tim sighed. "Sor-"

"Don't even finish that, McGee. Not unless you want me to lift up your head and smack the back of it."

"Got it, Boss… Can I have more ice?"

Gibbs handed him back the cup and Tim took another piece, then he handed it back to Gibbs.

"What happened?" Tim asked, breaking the small silence that had lasted a little less than a minute.

"What's the last you remember?"

Tim closed his eyes for a moment, trying to think back. "Tony shot David," He said, reopening his eyes. "Then I ran over to Devon cause… cause David had shot him. What happened to them? Is Devon okay?"

"David is recovering from the surgery he had to remove the bullet from his arm. He'll be transferred to Cumberland tomorrow afternoon."

Tim waited for Gibbs to continue, but he didn't. "What about Devon?"

"You need to sleep, Tim."

"Tell me Gibbs!" Tim begged.

"Devon was brought to the hospital and rushed into emergency surgery. He died on the operating table."

Tim stared blankly at Gibbs, no expression on his face. After a moment he began to slowly shake his head, whispering, "No, no, no, no…" He continued repeating himself over and over as tears filled in his eyes. He didn't care that Gibbs was right there; he couldn't stop himself from crying.

"No, no, no," He said a little louder as he placed his head into his hands and sobbed.

"Tim… Tim… McGee!" Gibbs repeated, trying to gain his attention. It seemed as though Tim couldn't hear him at all.

Gibbs took a hold of Tim's arms and, even though they were still hurt, he held onto them tightly and pulled them away from his face. "Tim, look at me!"

Tim slowly made eye contact, tears still pouring down his face.

"It's gonna be okay."

"His life… was such… a waste," Tim replied, trying to regain control of his breathing.

Gibbs shook Tim a little. "Hey! I don't ever wanna hear you say that again. You know that's not true. He died after saving your sister's life, your life, and countless other kids lives that might have ended because of David. He died a hero. That's not a waste. You understand me?"

Tim took a deep breath. "I just… wanted him to… know that there… was more out there. He could… have a life. A real one."

Gibbs had never seen Tim so emotional about anything. He knew that this had to be the worst thing Tim could ever hear. A boy who, so many years ago, was his best friend- a boy who he'd gone through so much with- finally had a chance at life and died because he helped Tim.

Gibbs pulled Tim close, putting a hand on his back, and allowed him to cry as he comforted him.

* * *

><p>That night, as Tim laid in his hospital bed, unable to sleep, he thought about the day he left Devon sitting in the woods, alone.<p>

They had been taken to the room with the tub. As the woman beat Devon, David pushed Tim under the water over and over, just as he had done a few days earlier. It was the worst feeling in the world. The ability to breathe being taken from you until you thought you were going to pass out, then suddenly you're able to breathe again. It would feel so good to get in two or three breaths, then it would begin again. Once more you would be unable to breathe, slowly drowning under the water.

Every time he would be lifted from the water, he could hear Devon crying in pain and, once it was over and they were forced to walk back to the main room, he could see the bruises and the blood from the beating.

When Tim closed his eyes he could see that day perfectly. Nothing was cloudy.

...And then they had gotten away, and Tim felt safe… but he had to leave Devon. If he wouldn't have, then maybe neither of them would have made it. That's what he kept telling himself, but he couldn't believe it. No matter what, he _shouldn't_ have left Devon that day… Even Gibbs always says that you never leave a man behind. He should have stayed, even if it meant both of them being taken once again, and both of them dying… And maybe, he believed, that would have been better.

* * *

><p><strong>I don't like to have Tim breaking down and crying a whole lot... not more than a few silent tears here and there, but I felt that he would cry over something like this. It's a pretty big thing. I knew I'd be killing of Devon since I began writing this story, I just hope you guys keep reading, cause I know most of you said "Please don't kill Devon". haha<br>**

**I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter (or even hated it, in the good way). Please review and let me know what you think :)**


	20. It Matters

Two days had passed. Tim had finally gotten everyone out of his room. He had constantly had visitors from the beginning of visiting hours until the end.

Tony had been visiting him last, but Tim told him he was tired and wanted to sleep for a while, so Tony left.

The truth was, Tim wasn't tired at all. He wanted Tony to leave so he could get up and see where David's room was. He had heard that David started doing worse around the time he was supposed to be transferred to Cumberland. His bullet wound had gotten infected and he had a pretty severe fever. It made Tim sick to think that doctors were actually helping him, trying to keep him alive.

Tim slowly got up out of bed. He convinced the doctor to take out his IV the day before. At first, the doctor didn't want to, but he finally agreed once Tim said he would make sure to drink plenty of fluids.

He was feeling better today than he had been in a while. His ribs didn't even hurt_ too_ bad. He knew this was the perfect time to "check in" on David.

Tim went into the bathroom to change into clothes that Abby had brought him the night before. He was sick of wearing the hospital gown, but he hadn't had time to change until now.

Once he was dressed, Tim went out of his room and began to walk around. He knew he couldn't get the room number using his "I'm a special agent" line as he didn't have his badge. Also, most of the nurses knew him now, so they knew that they weren't allowed to give him David's room number anyway, but he didn't need that. He knew what wing of the hospital David would be in, he knew there would probably be one guard there, and he knew how to distract him to get into David's room.

* * *

><p>Once he had the room in his sight, Tim saw the guard who was sitting outside of David's room, walk off and go to the bathroom.<p>

_'Well, that was easy,'_ He thought before making his way to the door.

The room had windows for the walls, so David could be seen at all times… not that he could do anything at the state he was in right now.

The only part that wasn't see-through was the small hallway where you first walk in the door.

Tim looked into the room, staring at David. So many things were going through his mind that he couldn't even sort it out.

He knew he needed to go in now, before the guard got back, so he stopped staring and opened the door.

He opened it to find Tony standing there.

Tony turned to him. "Oh, McGee, fancy seeing you here."

Tim's heart started racing. "T- Tony… Why a- are you here?"

"Because I figured you'd come here. I saw it in your eyes, McALittleTooObvious. You practically pushed me out of your room, claiming that you needed sleep, when we all know you haven't slept since you woke up two days ago… not willingly anyway."

"I just… I wanted to see him."

"When are you gonna learn that you're a sucky liar, Tim?"

Tim sighed. "Just go away, Tony."

"Oh, I'll go," Tony replied, then placed a hand on Tim's shoulder, "But you're coming with me."

"No, I'm not."

Tony started leading Tim out of the room, "Yes, you are, McGee. We're going to go take a walk… as soon as Bob comes back. He needed a bathroom break anyway, I just told him I'd take over. You really think they'd leave a guy like David completely unattended?"

"They've screwed up before."

"Not when Gibbs gets to talk to them before their shift."

They walked back out into the hall just as the guard returned.

"Feel better, Bob? Good. We're gonna go."

Tony walked off, still holding onto Tim's shoulder.

"Tony, I don't want to go for a walk."

"Too bad."

Tim jerked away from him. "Tony! I said no!"

Tony took a deep breath. "We're going, McGee." He took a hold of his shoulder again, "Let's. Go."

Tim reluctantly walked to the elevator with Tony. They were both quiet the whole ride down to the first floor. Once out of the elevator, Tony led Tim outside.

"What were you gonna do, McGee?" Tony asked as they walked around the hospital on the sidewalk.

"Nothing," Tim replied quietly.

Tony laughed. "Nothing? So you were just gonna go and visit the man that kidnapped you _twice_, kept one of your best friends for over twenty-three years, then killed him?"

"Leave me alone, Tony."

Tony stopped walking and, when Tim noticed, he stopped too.

"Why won't you just talk to me, Tim?"

"How am I supposed to? Everything's a joke to you!"

"This isn't a joke! You were about to murder a man, McGee! Do you not realize that?"

"No! I was about to make things even! I was about to fix something that should have been fixed a long time ago!"

"You think killing a man makes things even? You think that fixes things? How does that_ fix_ things?"

"He killed Devon! He took away my life! I should have never left Devon that day! I should have stayed with him! He would have killed us both back then and saved everyone a lot of useless trouble!"

Tony didn't reply. He just stared at Tim, realizing what the true problem was.

"Stop looking at me like that," Tim said, then he began to walk away.

Tony quickly caught up to him and stopped him again. "This isn't about David, is it? I mean, in the long run it is, but it's really about you."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes, I do. You think you should have been died all those years ago. You think that would have been better. You blame yourself for everything Devon went through."

"It's my fault."

"How? All you did was get free from that freak. How is it your fault?"

"I shouldn't have left him there, Tony. David caught him because I left him there. He went through twenty-three years of torture because of me."

Tony shook his head. "It's not your fault, Tim. You did everything you could… You were ten years old for God's sake!"

"It doesn't matter. I still should have stayed with him." Tim started walking off. Tony let him go for a moment, then he ran to catch up.

"Hey!" He called out, then he grabbed onto his arm. Once again, Tim was stopped by Tony getting in his way.

Tony let go of Tim's arm once he got in front of him. "No one would have been better off if you were dead."

Tim sighed. "To-"

"No. I'm serious, McGee. If you would've stayed then you and Devon would have died and you would have never been able to go to MIT and Johns Hopkins and be a smarty pants and work at NCIS. Would you want that?"

"I never would have known it. It wouldn't have mattered."

"Well, it matters to me. I know I kid you a lot, McGee, but I care about you. You're like a brother to me and _I_ for one am glad you _didn't_ die back then. I'm sure everyone on the team would agree."

Tim had never seen Tony be so honest before. He knew he must have been very worried.

"But… But what if I would have stayed and I had a chance to save us both. Then we'd both be here... Devon _wouldn't_ be dead."

Tony nodded. "Maybe. But you don't know that. You did a brave thing, McGee. You saw a chance to get out of a hellhole and you took it. You didn't let fear take over you. You did the right thing."

They were both silent for a moment.

"Tony?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think I'll ever be able to not think about it? Sometimes even the old memories seem so new in my head… And the new memories… they're so… vivid."

Tony took a deep breath. "No. I don't think you'll ever be able to not think about it… but, now that all of your friends know, maybe we can help out when it seems like a little too much to remember. We're all here for you, Tim."

Tim smiled slightly. "I know… Thanks, Tony."

Tony moved over to the side of Tim and put his arm around Tim's shoulders. "No problem, McGoo… Now, let's go get something to eat. They're serving meatloaf in the cafeteria today. It's supposed to be delicious."

Both Tim and Tony, and the rest of the team, knew that this was far from over. Tim was sure to have nightmares, there would be days where he would go from happy to depressed, and he'd most likely have to relive both kidnappings over and over again. But he had good friends, who were more like family, that he knew would be there for him every step of the way. Tim wasn't sure if the memories would ever stop haunting him, but he was alive, strong, and had a lot of people that cared for him… In the end, he knew he'd be okay.

* * *

><p><strong>The End!<strong>

**I don't think I've ever ended a story with A Tim/Tony talk. I just love their brotherly relationship on the show so I wanted to do a Tony-helps-Tim-out final chapter :) Hope you guys enjoyed! Thanks for reading! I've got a new story coming soon. It's more of a humor/friendship one with just tiny bits of drama here and there. I just wanted a little break from all the extreme drama I've been doing :) lol**

**Well, thanks for reading and reviewing! You guys are awesome.**

**God Bless!**


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